Accessibility of the UEEH

2026 edition

Introduction

Disabled, neurodivergent, chronically ill, deaf people have been coming to the UEEH for years. They consider that the event is not fully accessible.

The organization team is working on improving the accessibility and the visibility of anti-ableism issues at the UEEH. There are people with disabilities and neurodivergent people as part of the organization team.

When registering for the UEEH, you will be able to tell us about your specific needs.

We will do our best to respond to them together within the limits of our material and human capacities.

Here is an overview of the accessibility conditions at UEEH:

In short

The venue of the event is in accordance with French ERP standards (Establishment open to the public)
Accompanying persons and assistance dogs are welcome, their participation is free of charge.
The event is partially accessible to people with disabilities and neurodivergent people (mobility, information, sensoriality, social interactions, etc.)

Coming to the UEEH

For information on transport access to the place of the event, see the following page: Coming to the high school.

We have a vehicle adapted to wheelchairs available during the event.

Coming accompanied

You can come with a caregiver, life auxiliary or assistant, accompanying person or interpreter.

They do not have to pay for their participation in the UEEH.

If you need but can't come with an accompanying person, contact us beforehand, we'll see if we can arrange it.

Assistance animals or service animals are welcome and drinking water is available on site.

Mobility and physical accessibility

Indoor spaces

All indoor spaces on the ground floor are accessible via a ramp.

Several PRM toilets are available throughout the building, but not in the gymnasium.

Doors facing the outside are heavy and not automatic. This can be difficult for people in wheelchairs and for those with limited upper body strength.

Two exterior doors have thresholds. A folding ramp allows access to one of the doors. The second room is accessible through an interior door.

The interior floor of the high school is flat and suitable for most wheelchairs and other mobility aids.

Access to the floors (activity room, rooms) is via stairs or a lift.

All interior doors are standard office doors, wide enough for wheelchair users.

Most of the seats are school chairs without armrests and hard plastic sofas. Blankets and pillows are available.

It is possible to pass in priority during the meal service to avoid standing in line in front of the refectory.

There are PRM adapted toilets on each floor.

There are 3 PRM bedrooms with 2 single beds in each. Each of the PRM rooms has a shower and PRM adapted toilet with handrails. Handrails for showers are attached to the back of the seat.

Outdoor spaces

Outdoor soils are made up of tar, gravel or turf. The gym is accessible from the ground floor.

Access to the river is limited and is via a foot path that is not suitable for wheelchairs.

A second folding ramp is available to access part of the garden.

Heat and heat waves

There are often days of strong heat stress during the summer at Vic-en-Bigorre, and the high school where we hold the UEEH is not well-equipped in that regard. For people to whom heat is an issue, the venue remains not very accessible.

Beware: some medication (psychiatric treatments, antihistamines) increase the risk of heatstroke, fainting, and photosensitivity. Before you come, be sure to check if you are affected by these side effects so you can prepare accordingly.

Interior spaces

There is no air conditioning.\
It can be hot in the bedrooms and in collective spaces.

Some collective spaces will be equipped with small fans and a few misting sprays will be available.

There is one cool, quite calm space. It's small and located away from the living and meal areas, but accessible to everyone.

There is cold water in the cafeteria, in the restrooms and in the bedrooms. There's an ice machine, fridges and a freezer.

There are showers in the dormitory floors and in the gym lockers.

Feel free to come with your handheld or electrical fan, misting spray, parasol, to cool your room and yourself. If needed you can buy one at a supermarket close to the high school.

Outside areas

In front of the high school, there are not many trees and we will install two canopy tents (4 by 4 meters) and two triangular tarps to create small shaded areas.

In the camping area, there are some trees. The walk from the high school to the camping is not shaded.

It can be very hot in the camping area during the day. But it's possible to rest inside the buildings, in the calm or interaction-free collective rooms, where it's cooler.

Beyond the camping, there's a small forest, shaded, with a river. But it's difficult to access: the way there is of dirt and rocks, not suitable for wheelchairs, narrow and sometimes sloping.

To this day, the municipal pool of Vic-en-Bigorre is little or not accessible to people with reduced mobility (step, no ramp…).

Sound/hearing accessibility

This year, French<>French Sign Language (LSF) interpreters will be present at the UEEH from August 6 to August 9.

During that period, all collective gatherings (assemblies, international forum, announcements) will be interpreted.

For workshops, it will be possible to request a LSF interpretation, in the same way that to request an interpretation in other languages.

For cabarets, performances and so on, mixed formats will be proposed (surtitles, interpretation, live transcription…) depending on the program.

Where possible, subtitling will be proposed for film and video screenings.

When interpreters are not there, a live written transcript of the workshops can be set up on demand.

Paper and pencils will be available in different spaces to make written communication easier with non-signing people.

Microphones and speakers will be used during moments of collective life (general assemblies, international forum, announcements).

Multilingual interpretation (oral French, Arabic, English, Castilian, etc.) relies on radios and headphones.

Some spaces can sometimes be noisy, but there are also quieter spaces. Quiet bedrooms will also be set up.

We have earplugs and earmuffs to lend.

Light and electrosensitive accessibility

The lights are mostly non-adjustable neon lights, not very suitable for photosensitive people. Gelatins (colored sheets) will be put in place to reduce light intensity.

The rooms and most of the collective areas are equipped with blinds to reduce glare from the sun and the street ligths.

We have a few pairs of sunglasses to lend.

There is wifi in the high school and a large number of people share mobile wifi hotsposts.

Accessibility of information

The anti-ableism commission is available before and during the event to answer all your questions and requests. Write us an email at cocrip@ueeh.net or call or text us on Signal at @ueeh.26.

People at the reception will provide information and guidance. People at the reception are made aware of welcoming deaf, hard of hearing or non-verbal people, and will present you communication options depending on your wants and needs.

Plans of the venue will be available before and during the event.

The participant’s booklet and other documents related to the event will be available on site, in digital format upon request.

The program of the event is a large table on the wall which is potentially difficult to read and understand.

The task distribution table is a large table on the wall which is potentially difficult to read and understand.

No resources in Braille are available.

Accessibility for anxious and neurodiverse people

We invite people with anxious issues or who need to, to contact us beforehand if they want to speak to someone from the orga team before joining the event.

When registering it is also possible to specify the need to come with a friend or pair to avoid to be alone.

We have sensory toys (stimtoys), earplugs and earmuffs to lend.

An invisibility cloak system will be set up during the event. It's a large t-shirt that lets others know you don't want social interactions.

It is possible to have priority accesse to the meal service to avoid waiting in line in front of the refectory.

Meetings attract a lot of people (≈ 150-200 people) which can be very exhausting and the collective spaces can be very noisy.

Rooms are upstairs and are quieter. Quiet spaces and / or without interactions will be set up.

Reducing the risk of airborne diseases

We have a light Covid protocol that we know is insufficient. You can read it by following this link: COVID protocol. (2026 update soon)

FFP2 and surgical masks, Covid self-tests and hydro-alcoholic gel will be available.

There will be air purifiers in some of the activity areas and in the refectory. Rooms will be aired and vaentilated as much as possible.

Bedrooms and evening spaces are particularly at risk.

When registering, it is possible to convey the need to share a bedroom only with people who pay attention to compliance with harm reduction practices with regards to airborne diseases.

Accessibility linked to food and eating disorders (ATT)

Meals are offered 3 times a day at a more or less fixed time. They are mostly vegan, or with meat and vegetarian options depending on the meal.

On registration it is possible to indicate your allergies or specific diets. The kitchen team will do everything they can to give you suitable meals. If necessary you can ask us for a contact to discuss it with them.

Food and drinks are available on site at all times in the refectory's fridges.

There are fridges available to store personal food.

You will be able to heat and cook meals continuously in a small kitchen
area.
There is a supermarket at 650 meters by walking or 5 min by car.

Sleeping at the UEEH

The rooms are on the first and second floor, accessible with an elevator or stairs.

There are between 2 and 6 beds per room. There are 4 single rooms, which are prioritized for people with specific needs.

The beds are one-seat beds.

It is possible to request rooms with a chosen mix of people (for instance: trans-only, neurodivergent only, etc). Early-tp-bed sleeper / quiet rooms can be set up.

There are 3 PRM bedrooms with 2 single beds in each.

It is also possible to sleep in your tent or in your truck, there are a few spaces in the shade.

After 10pm, people are asked to make less noise around the resting areas.

Care and listening during the event

During the event there are:

An anti-ableism team with whom to discuss your specific needs and potential violence.
A listening team trained in active listening and available 24 hours a day.
A “rocks” system: every 2 days, a moment to discuss how we feel or to share conviviality with the same
group of people throughout the week
Massage slots open to all.
A group to manage and support conflicts and violence, whether sexual or physical, discriminatory or not.
The possibility to leave to do something else: go to the pool (no wheelchair access), the forest, the city …

Everyone is invited to do daily tasks (household, kitchen, dishes…) so that the responsibility of managing daily life is distributed as much as possible.

We know that not everyone has the same capacity when it comes to self-management. It is possible to do fewer tasks or not at all according to your abilities.

The task distribution table is a large table on the wall that is potentially difficult to read and understand.

Tutorial sheets detail how to do each task.

For each of the tasks, potential difficulties are highlighted (load port, standing position, fixed schedule, etc.) to help choosing tasks.

First aid information

A first aid kit is available in the kitchen and in the health area.

On site there are people trained:

In first aid and a doctor.
To support people in psychiatric crises.
To support people in overdoses.

We have emergency naloxone in case of opioid overdose.

Alcohol consumption, smoking and harm reduction

Alcohol consumption is possible in opaque cups. The bar is open only in the evening and sells alcoholic drinks and soft drinks.

Inside is non-smoking. There is a smoking area outside. We try as much as possible to ensure that the spaces for circulation and sociability outside are non-smoking.

There is a harm reduction area with equipment available.