Festival attendees with mobility issues are included in the Pukkelpop audience

Festival attendees with mobility issues are included in the Pukkelpop audience

Pukkelpop, a popular music festival held near Hasselt in north-east Belgium, has made significant strides in improving accessibility for festival-goers with disabilities. This progress can be largely attributed to the Flemish agency Inter, which works with around sixty festivals to make them more inclusive.

At Pukkelpop, Inter has facilitated an accessible campsite equipped with showers, water stations, adapted sanitary facilities, and fridges for storing medication. This year, over 130 festival-goers with accessibility needs stayed at the campsite, which is run by around forty Inter volunteers.

Inter's efforts extend beyond the campsite. They provided more than 400 accessibility aids, including wheelchairs, ensuring that festival-goers with mobility issues could navigate the festival grounds with ease. For individuals with hearing aids, Inter installed special magnetic induction loops at major stages, such as the Main Stage and the Marquee Stage, allowing hearing aid users to listen to music directly into their devices.

Mech Nieuwkamp, a festival-goer from Tilburg in the Netherlands, emphasised the importance of visibility in regular parking spaces for people in wheelchairs. She also called for greater public awareness and vigilance regarding the challenges faced by people with disabilities, such as being in a wheelchair, being blind, or being autistic.

Matthieu Dewit, a regular at Pukkelpop, enjoys watching concerts from a raised platform accessible via a ramp, a feature that enhances his festival experience. He became acquainted with Inter through a social media post in 2017.

While Inter's presence markedly enhances festival accessibility, some attendees note that when Inter is absent, accessibility can be inconsistent. There is also a call for increased public awareness and understanding of the experiences of people with various disabilities to further improve accessibility.

These efforts create more space and ease of movement for people with disabilities, thereby improving their overall enjoyment of the festival. As Mech Nieuwkamp puts it, "Accessibility at Pukkelpop enhances the overall festival experience, making it more enjoyable."

[1] [Source 1] [3] [Source 3] [4] [Source 4]

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