What to Expect

Welcome & What to Expect
Understanding Disability & How Technology Helps
Who Should Come & How You Can Contribute
The Process We’ll Follow
How Projects Get Evaluated & What Happens Next
Understanding the Landscape (Glossary & Context)

Welcome & What to Expect

You’re Invited

Welcome to Access Bristol! We bring people together to create solutions that help people with disabilities fully participate in the activities and social settings they care about. It’s all about inclusion, creativity, and community in a warm, supportive environment.

Everyone is welcome—whether you:

Have a disability and want to work on a project that matters to you (your ideas drive this!)
Are a family member or friend of someone with a disability and want to support them
Are a student curious about assistive technology and eager to learn
Work at a company making assistive tech and want to connect with real users
Work for a disability organization and have ideas to share
Have technical skills you’d like to use for a good cause
Have no experience with disability but want to learn and help out
Just want to meet people and work on something meaningful (and fun!)

You don’t need any special experience or skills to participate. Whatever brings you here – your interests, your questions, your abilities, your time – we’ll help you find a way to contribute and learn. All you need is an open mind and a willingness to work with others.

What We’ll Do Together

Over two days together, we’ll:

Meet each other (and maybe make a few new friends) and share our stories.
Form teams based on shared interests and goals.
Learn from people with disabilities about what matters most to them (this is the heart of everything).
Develop project ideas together through brainstorming and collaboration.
Create plans and prototypes that could even lead to funding or support to continue after the event.

The main goal: By Sunday, each team will have a written proposal for a project that addresses a real need. Some teams might continue working together after the weekend, while others might hand off their plan to someone else who can carry it forward. Both outcomes are great and valuable – it’s all about moving ideas closer to reality.

How This Fits into the Bigger Picture

There are lots of ways people support disability inclusion. For example, hackathons churn out quick tech prototypes, advocacy groups fight for rights and better policies, companies design and sell assistive gadgets, government programs offer services, families and friends give daily support, and disability communities organize and advocate for themselves.

Access Bristol adds something different: we slow things down and focus on understanding before solving. We take time to build relationships and really listen to context before jumping into solutions. This approach complements the faster, action-oriented work happening elsewhere – we fill in a gap by laying a strong foundation.

We’re one piece of a much larger puzzle. Different approaches have different strengths. We don’t think our way is “better” than other ways. It’s just one approach that focuses on relationship-building and careful planning that quick sprint events often don’t have time for. And we’re not doing this alone – Access Bristol is part of a global partner network of like-minded folks (including universities in the UK, Asia, North America, and beyond) who share these goals. This worldwide community shares stories and connects projects across borders, helping ideas get adapted to local contexts everywhere.

What Makes This Different

It’s not a competition. We’re not competing for prizes or racing against the clock. There’s no pressure to have something built by Sunday night. Instead, we’re building understanding and trust. Think of it as a collaborative creative space, not a contest.
Everyone’s expertise matters equally. Different people know different things, and we need all of it. Someone living with a disability has knowledge and insight that an engineer or designer doesn’t. Engineers might know things that lived experience alone can’t teach. Family members understand daily routines and challenges in ways others might miss. All these perspectives carry equal weight here – no single “expert” dominates.
The focus is on the team, not personal glory. This event is about collective action. Being part of a team might mean putting aside the urge to showcase your own skills and instead asking “What does the team need from me right now?” We love folks who help the group shine. It’s not about individual superheroes; it’s about what we can accomplish together.
Participate in whatever way works for you. There’s no one “right” way to contribute. You could lead a project, or you might support someone else’s idea. You might lend a specific skill, help connect people to resources, or just listen and learn. You can be super active or take it slow and observe – whatever suits you. All roles are valuable. Do what feels comfortable and meaningful for you.

What You’ll Take Away

A better understanding of how assistive technology gets made – from idea to reality.
Connections with people you might never otherwise meet (hello, new friends!).
Hands-on experience working on something real and tangible (not just a hypothetical classroom exercise).
Practice in skills like listening, planning, and collaborating on a diverse team.
Maybe a project that continues beyond the weekend (if your team decides to keep going).
Or maybe just a great learning experience and some fun memories.

No pressure to continue after Sunday. Some people will be excited to keep working on their projects, and others will contribute during the event and then move on to other things. Both choices are completely fine – do what’s right for you. Either way, you’ll have contributed to something meaningful and hopefully had a rewarding time.

Understanding Disability & How Technology Helps

What Disability Means

Disability isn’t just about a medical condition – it’s about how that condition interacts with the world. The World Health Organization describes disability as having three connected aspects:

Impairment: A difference or problem in how someone’s body or mind works (physical, sensory, cognitive, mental health, or other differences).
Activity Limitation: A challenge in performing specific tasks or activities. For example, an impairment in vision can make reading small text hard.
Participation Restriction: A barrier to being involved in life situations (work, social activities, education, etc.). This happens when an activity limitation meets an environmental or societal barrier.

In simpler terms, disability arises not just from a person’s impairment, but from the mismatch between a person’s abilities and their environment.

Everyone Faces Some Barriers (But Not Equally)

All of us encounter barriers now and then. However, some people face these kinds of barriers constantly. Access Bristol is focused on helping people who regularly encounter big barriers that limit their participation, such as:

Physical infrastructure barriers: Buildings, transportation, or public spaces that aren’t accessible.
Lack of accessible tools: Essential tools for living, working, or learning that aren't designed with disabilities in mind.
Systemic barriers: Policies or systems that inadvertently exclude people.
Communication barriers: Information that isn’t available in a person’s usable format.
Economic barriers: Extra costs that people with disabilities have to bear to achieve the same things others get for free.

Participatory Equivalence: The Core Idea

Participatory equivalence means making sure people can engage in activities they care about in ways that work for them, and those ways are valued just as much as anyone else’s. The goal isn’t to make everyone do things the exact same way. The goal is to ensure that different ways of participating still let a person fully join in, with the same richness and value of experience.

How Technology Can Help

Technology can address disability at several levels:

Addressing the impairment directly: Technologies that assist or augment a person’s abilities, like communication devices or mobility aids.
Easing activity limitations: Tools that change how a task is done to make it easier, such as alternative computer controls or task automation.
Enabling participatory equivalence: Technologies that focus on inclusion and equal participation, like platforms that support multiple modes of communication.
Supporting broader change and self-advocacy: Tech that empowers communities, like tools for documenting accessibility issues or platforms for community organizing.

Projects at Access Bristol can fall anywhere on this spectrum. The important thing is that we match the solution to the real need.

Who Should Come & How You Can Contribute

Everyone Is Welcome

Access Bristol is open to anyone who wants to make a difference. If you’re interested, we want you there. This includes:

People with disabilities: Your lived experience is valuable expertise.
Family members and friends: You bring insights into daily challenges and context.
Allies: You want to learn, help, and follow the lead of the community.
Students and researchers: You want to apply your skills to real-world problems.
People from assistive technology companies: You want to build genuine relationships with users.
People from disability organizations: You want to connect your community with resources and shape solutions.

Finding Your Role

You don’t need to know your role yet. Here are some ways to contribute:

Share your lived experience: Teach others about your daily life.
Lead a project: Guide the vision and direction of a team.
Use your technical or creative skills: Apply your knowledge to support a project.
Connect people and ideas: Act as a facilitator and communicator.
Support and advise: Offer guidance and feasibility checks.
Learn by doing: Participate mainly to understand and help where needed.

The Most Important Thing: Focus on Collective Strength

Access Bristol works best when we all focus on strengthening the team. This means being ready to listen, do the unglamorous work, and stay flexible. We’re looking for people who find satisfaction in group success.

No Experience Needed (Really!)

You absolutely do not need any special background in disability, tech, or design to join in. The most valuable thing you can bring is genuine interest in understanding others and a willingness to work together.

The Process We’ll Follow

Seven Stages Over Two Days

We structure the event around a framework of seven stages to go from stories to plans. You can read more about the core values of each stage on our philosophy page.

Stage 1: Initial Meeting

We start by introducing ourselves, sharing our stories, and establishing how we want to work together. It’s all about getting comfortable and familiar with each other.

Stage 2: Getting to Know Each Other

Teams spend quality time listening and learning, diving deeper into the experiences of people with disabilities. The idea is to really understand the context before thinking about solutions.

Stage 3: Deciding to Work Together

We form teams around specific ideas, but first, we have an honest conversation about what each person can realistically contribute and what they need to participate comfortably.

Stage 4: Choosing What to Work On

Each team figures out the specific problem they want to tackle, led by team members with disabilities. We research what’s been tried before and assess what’s realistic to accomplish.

Stage 5: Making a Work Plan

The team lays out its resources, breaks the project into steps, and assigns responsibilities. We create a realistic timeline and brainstorm potential challenges.

Stage 6: Executing Initial Steps

We start building or testing the idea, creating quick prototypes or mock-ups. We get immediate feedback from the people who would use the solution and improve as we go.

Stage 7: Long-Term Planning & Wrap-Up

As we near the end, each team looks at what’s next. We discuss commitment for continuing the project and plan for a handoff if needed. We then take time to reflect and celebrate what we’ve accomplished.

Important Activities Throughout

Throughout all these stages, teams should:

Gather and document stories: Keep work grounded in reality.
Talk to informed people: Seek out others who know about the issue.
Learn from peers who’ve succeeded: Avoid reinventing the wheel.
Research what’s been tried before: Scan the landscape for existing solutions.
Think about context: Consider social, cultural, and financial factors.
Test with real users repeatedly: Get continuous feedback.
Document everything: Keep a clear trail of what happened and why.
Plan for open sharing: Default to an open-source, open-knowledge approach.

How Projects Get Evaluated & What Happens Next

What We’re Looking For in Proposals

By Sunday, each team will produce a written proposal. We evaluate them based on criteria inspired by the UN Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on inclusion, innovation, and practical impact.

Evaluation Criteria:

Community Leadership (25%): Is the project truly community-driven, with people with disabilities in decision-making roles?
Feasibility & Sustainability (20%): Is the plan realistic, and is there a viable path for maintaining the project long-term?
Potential for Adoption (15%): Will people actually want to use the solution and integrate it into their lives?
Flexibility & Adaptability (15%): Can the solution be customized for different users and contexts?
Open Source & Community Ownership (15%): Does the project empower the community to own and control the solution?
Impact & Scope (10%): How many people could benefit, and does it address a significant barrier?

What Makes Proposals Strong

Strong proposals show deep understanding of users, clear evidence of community-driven priorities, realistic plans, and a commitment to open sharing and sustainability.

What Happens After the Weekend

Selected proposals may receive a grant and ongoing support. All participants become part of the Access Bristol network, with opportunities to stay connected and join future activities.

There are many possible paths for a project after the event, from becoming an open-source project to a commercial product or a research initiative. All outcomes that help the community are considered a success.

Understanding the Landscape (Glossary & Context)

Key Concepts

Disability: The interaction between a person’s impairment and the barriers in their environment.
Assistive Technology (AT): Any tool, device, or software that helps people with disabilities do things that might otherwise be difficult.
Accessibility: Designing things so that people with disabilities can use them just as easily as anyone else.
Accommodations: Adjustments made for an individual to help them participate.
Participatory Equivalence: Ensuring that different ways of participating have equivalent value and meaning.
Universal Design: Designing products and environments to be usable by all people to the greatest extent possible.
Co-Design: Designing with users, not just for them, as active partners in the process.

The Ecosystem Supporting People with Disabilities

Access Bristol is part of a larger ecosystem that includes:

Disability Advocacy Organizations: Groups that fight for rights and inclusion.
Support Service Providers: Organizations that deliver direct services like personal care or transportation.
Medical & Rehabilitation Services: Healthcare providers and therapists.
Educational Institutions: Schools and universities providing accessible education.
Government Programs & Infrastructure: Programs providing benefits, protections, and accessible public services.
Research Institutions: Universities and centers developing new technologies and knowledge.

Different Approaches to Making Assistive Technology

Several approaches contribute to creating assistive technology:

Traditional Hackathons: Fast-paced events for rapid prototyping.
Community-Engaged Design (like Access Bristol): A slower process prioritizing relationships and deep understanding.
User Testing & Market Research: Gathering feedback to inform product development.
Open Source Development: Collaborative creation of free and adaptable tools.
Commercial Product Development: Companies designing and selling polished, supported products.
DIY & Maker Movement: Individuals creating custom, personalized solutions.

How Access Bristol Fits In

Access Bristol’s role is to act as a catalyst. We create a space for relationships to form before solutions are built, center community priorities, mix expertise on equal footing, and focus on sustainability. We connect different parts of the ecosystem to nurture early-stage project development with the community deeply involved.