Creating accessible and welcoming spaces and places
Creating accessible and welcoming spaces and places
Guidance for indoor sport, recreation and aquatic facilities
New guidance is available to help make indoor sport, recreation and aquatics facilities easier for more people to use.
Developed by Recreation Aotearoa in partnership with Sport NZ and BarrierFree, it focuses on practical ways to improve accessibility in both new and existing facilities.
Making indoor spaces easier to use
Indoor facilities are an important part of how people stay active and connect in their communities. But for some people, these spaces aren’t easy to use.
Improving accessibility benefits a wide range of people, including:
- disabled people
- people with different physical, sensory, learning or cognitive needs
- neurodivergent people (for example, people with autism or ADHD)
- older adults
- whānau with young children
- people recovering from injury
- people who may not feel comfortable or welcome in traditional facility environments.
Small and practical changes can make a big difference. When facilities are easier to use, spaces feel more welcoming for everyone and more people can have positive experiences doing activities they love – and keep coming back.
What’s in the guidance
The guidance sets out clear, actionable steps that go beyond the minimum building standards and encourage ongoing improvements over time.
The guidance covers:
- Planning: thinking about accessibility from the start
- Design: creating spaces that work for a wide range of users
- Build and upgrade: making good decisions during development
- Day-to-day use: improving how people experience the space
Who it is for
The guidance is useful for anyone involved in indoor sport, recreation and aquatics facilities, including:
- councils and funders
- planners and developers
- architects, designers and builders
- facility managers and operators
- maintenance and upgrade teams
- anyone wanting to make indoor spaces more accessible.
How you can use it
You can use the guidance to:
- guide planning, design and operational decisions
- support conversations with councils, funders and project partners
- identify and prioritise improvements over time
- advocate for more accessible indoor spaces.
