neurodiversity in the events industry

In Conversation with Sarah Spurgeon

The end of March and beginning of April mark Neurodiversity Celebration Week and Autism Awareness Day. Alongside celebrating the lives, minds and innovations of the neurodiverse population, these events serve as an opportunity to reflect on the ways in which we can be more mindful, aware and accommodating of neurodiversity. Whether as a colleague, boss, parent or friend, we all benefit from taking a neuro-inclusive approach to our relationships and environment. As part of Autism Awareness Day, we caught up with Sarah Spurgeon. With over a decade of experience in Event Management and Operations across some of the UK’s most iconic events, Sarah shares her industry insights as a neurodiverse event professional. 

Q: What measures do you think would help to ensure accessibility and inclusivity in the events industry for its workforce, as well as those attending events? In particular those searching for jobs, setting up inclusive spaces at events and getting people into the room.

“I think we need to make sure the right people are in the room at the design stage of events. We need to keep in mind that when we have met one person with autism, they don’t represent everybody with autism. In the context of making workplaces in the industry more accessible, it’s about making sure we have a broad understanding of people’s needs and are catering for them. Those voices need to be heard.

“How people experience their neurodivergence will often have common themes, such as how they interact with their sensory environment, what their communication skills are like and their method of working. You can put things in place that make it more accessible for neurodiverse people, which will help everyone to varying degrees. It's important to keep in mind that what works for one person with autism won’t work for another. Flexible and remote working is really important. Autonomy helps to preserve dignity – particularly if someone is having a bad day. Some will be more productive at home.

“Appreciating the level of difficulty that people already have can go a long way. For example, a lot of people will say they support International Women’s Day, but they aren’t putting things in place to evidence this. Show, don’t just tell. This will have a knock-on effect and help everyone even if they aren’t neurodivergent.

“The attendee experience is important to think about. How did this person get here, what might have affected this person leading up to, during and after the event? This thought process should also be considered when posting jobs. Is the diversity and accessibility statement front and centre of the job advertisement? Having to work hard to find this information out is a red flag and not enough is done to make this journey easier. There is often someone who is in charge of this, so I shouldn’t be having to use my own energy to seek this information out, advocate for myself and put my own accessibility measures in place. It becomes exhausting and much harder to do the work.

“Things that can be done. A super clear job advertisement, including what you’re expected to do, who you’re expected to work with, whether there is flexible working, are they open to job shares, statements for how people share their needs. If it is made easier for people to express what they need, it will encourage people to speak up more freely. In our society we are generally told to just get on with things, but that narrative harms everyone.”

Q. What changes would you like to see most in the industry? Is there anything in particular that you think may have an adverse effect?

“After Covid, people became better at setting boundaries with their time and energy. I am concerned that we are slipping back into working too long and too hard. I have seen a lot of people struggle with burnout. As someone with a disability, I cannot afford to work as much as I used to because my mental health suffers a steep decline. A life-work balance attitude needs to be maintained post-Covid, and not slip back to pre-Covid standards. I am worried that there are people who will work the job of two people and complete more and more hours as a badge of honour. In actuality, there is no reason for this to occur regularly. It is really difficult for someone with these difficulties to meet those same standards. If I did this, I would be at risk of a mental health crisis.”