Live Nation's UK festivals will now be more accessible for disabled attendees
The Equality and Human Rights Commission took legal action against the events giant following reports of accessibility issues at Wireless in 2022
Disabled attendees of Live Nation-owned festivals, including Wireless, Wilderness and Reading and Leeds, will see new accessibility provisions following a legal agreement with the UK's Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).
The agreement requires Live Nation and its operator, Festival Republic, to enact policies such as providing enhanced accessibility guides, compulsory disability awareness/inclusion training, sensory calm spaces and more at all of its festivals.
The agreement comes after the EHRC took legal action against Live Nation following reports of accessibility issues at Wireless in 2022 and Download in 2023, both operated by Festival Republic.
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The EHRC utilised a Section 23 legal agreement in the Equality Act 2010 to ensure Live Nation provides increased accessibility for disabled patrons, with many changes having already come into place ahead of last year's festival season.
Other requirements featured in the agreement include the need for policies and guidelines that ensure accessibility is embedded at every stage of a fan’s journey, a "mystery shopper system" where disabled participants attend festivals to assess facilities, and post-event surveys distributed to disabled fans.
The agreement covers festivals including Download, Crystal Palace Concert Series, Finsbury Park Concert Series, Wireless Festival, Latitude Festival, Wilderness, Gunnersbury Park Concert Series, Reading Festival and Leeds Festival.
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“Festivals should be a place where everyone can have fun and make lasting memories,“ says EHRC chair Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson. “That’s why we took action against Live Nation, using our regulatory powers to ensure it complied with its legal duties to create inclusive and accessible events that everyone can be a part of.”
“After monitoring its activity for the past two years, we’re content that Live Nation has met the terms of its legal agreement with us, making a series of necessary changes to ensure disabled fans can enjoy festivals just as easily as anyone else,“ she continued.
“These tangible improvements will create an environment every fan can enjoy and give disabled people an opportunity to have their voices heard, shaping the accessibility of future events.
“We expect other festival operators to take this opportunity to examine what they are doing to make reasonable adjustments for disabled fans and ensure they are creating inclusive events for everyone.”
Megan Townsend is Mixmag's Deputy Editor, follow her on X
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