CIfA events aim to be as accessible and inclusive as possible. If you have any requests or suggestions for how we can make the conference more accessible for you, please get in touch at conference@archaeologists.net.

CIfA is committed to promoting equality and diversity for all its members. While delegates may or may not be CIfA members, we ask everyone to read and implement our equal opportunities policy.

If you have any problems accessing the information or materials on this website or the any of our partner platforms, the CIfA team would be more than happy to help. Please contact us at conference@archaeologists.net or on Twitter @InstituteArch.

In moving to a hybrid format for many of our upcoming events, our hope is that our programme will improve accessibility of the conference for all, whilst shielding our participants; particularly those who may be at risk or vulnerable, from COVID-19.

To enhance accessibility in this new digital format, we have considered the below:

Bursaries

We aim to have bursary spaces available for most of our paid events. Check your event's page for more information or email the event team at conference@archaeologists.net for more info.

Conference technology

We will be using a custom built virtual conference platform which will contain all of our sessions, session information, documents and networking features. The platform has been designed to be easy to use and straightforward to navigate, and a short demonstration video of the conference platform can be viewed below:

All of our conference sessions will be accessed and launched from this platform but run through Zoom - for further information on Zoom, please visit the Zoom accessibility page.

Prior to the conference:

If you require any assistance to complete your conference registration, our team would be happy to help. You can email: conference@archaeologists.net or call: 0118 966 2841.
For any of our large scale events, a PDF or plain text version of presentations will be available the day prior to the commencement of the conference either on request, or from the conference portal (‘materials’ section). Please contact conference@archaeologists.net to request a copy of the presentation in a PDF or plain text format for assistive devices.
For our Annual Conference and Innovation Festival, we will use web-based event platforms. Considering our change to our new platform, we're aware that some participants may not be as familiar with or comfortable with this technology. To assist in demonstrating the features, how it will work and how you can get the most from your conference experience, we will be posting an "Introduction to Sched" prior to the festival. This session will be recorded and able to be viewed at any time from within the platform, even if you have registered to attend a separate day. We do also intend to work with our conference platform provider to produce a series of instructional videos that you can view prior to the start of the conference
If preferred, the conference mobile app (Sched) is available for most mobile devices by visiting the Google Play or Apple Stores to enable you to attend the conference on your device rather than on a computer. If you have any further questions regarding compatibility, please contact conference@archaeologists.net
All presenters share CIfA’s commitment to accessibility and have been briefed in online presentation best practice to ensure the visibility of slides, that visual content is described verbally and that they speak clearly for closed captioning. If at any time, you require assistance in a session, please do let the CIfA event team know, by using the chat feature.

During the conference:

Feel free to pause or step away from video conferencing sessions at any time if you require a break. Unless otherwise indicated, all sessions (with the exception of break out and discussion rooms) will be recorded and will be available to view on demand through the platform after the conclusion of the session. Scheduled breaks have also been incorporated into the conference agenda
To view a session recording at any time, simply click on the session you'd like to view and the video will be available to watch.
Zoom AI-generated live closed captions will be available for all conference sessions and can be switched on at any time by clicking the 'closed caption' button within the session itself
Transcripts for all sessions can also be saved from within the session, or, will be available to download after the session has concluded from within our Cadence platform
In addition to the recording, all presentation materials (slides/white papers) can be downloaded from the session page.
All video recordings and conference materials, including slides and white papers will be available for a period of 365 days following the conference, so that participants can rewatch, return to a session, watch any other sessions they missed and to obtain transcripts and any additional information for each session.
Telephone dial-in facilities are available for all conference session audio if preferred. This will allow delegates with assistive needs or internet issues to access the session separate from the conference platform. Telephone numbers can be found here, in the session description on the platform or by contacting conference@archaeologists.net and letting us know which session you'd like to attend
Sessions where you may be asked to contribute either through voice or video, such as workshops, drop in chat spaces or other sessions are clearly indicated as such on the conference platform. Participation in such sessions is entirely optional and delegates will be asked to opt in by activating their video and audio when entering the session

Following the conference:

All sessions (with the exception of some live workshops, online break out and discussion rooms) will be recorded and available to view shortly after the session finishes through the conferencing platform – simply click on the session and the video will be available to view with captioning available if preferred
In addition to the recording, all presentation materials (slides/white papers) as well as the transcript of the session can be downloaded from the session page
All video recordings and conference materials, including slides and white papers will be available for a period of 365 days following the conference, so that participants can rewatch, return to a session, watch any other sessions they missed and to obtain transcripts or any additional information for each session

Harassment-free conference

CIfA is committed to providing a harassment-free conference experience for everyone. Please see our harrassment policy for further information which outlines our expectations for all participants, what can constitute harrassment, how to confidentially report harrassment and what action can be taken.

Questions, suggestions or requests

As mentioned above, CIfA aims to be as accessible and inclusive as possible and we are investigating additional ways that we can make sure the conference is accessible to all. If you have any additional requests or suggestions for how we can make the conference more accessible for you, please get in touch at conference@archaeologists.net

CIfA online event accessibility