Membership organisations have a new reason to review how accessible and inclusive their member experience really is.
On 5 August 2026, an updated Equality Act 2010 Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations came into force across England, Scotland and Wales. It replaces guidance dating back to 2011 and reflects developments in legislation, case law and equality guidance over the past 15 years.
Importantly, this is not a new Equality Act and it does not suddenly introduce equality obligations for membership organisations. Many of those obligations already existed.
What it does provide is updated statutory guidance on how organisations, including membership associations, should understand and meet those obligations today.
For membership teams, that makes this a useful moment to look beyond policies and ask a more practical question:
Can every eligible member actually access and participate in the membership experience you provide?
Why the new guidance matters to associations
The updated Code has a dedicated chapter covering associations.
Under the Equality Act, an association is broadly defined as an organisation with at least 25 members, where membership is regulated by rules involving criteria and a selection process. Whether the organisation is incorporated, operates for profit or not, does not determine whether these provisions apply.
Depending on their structure, this can include many clubs, societies and other membership bodies. Charitable associations are also covered, although additional provisions apply specifically to charities. Trade organisations are dealt with separately under Part 5 of the Equality Act, so organisations should check which provisions apply to their particular structure.
The Code has more significance than ordinary best-practice guidance. It is statutory guidance and can be used as evidence in legal proceedings, with courts and tribunals required to take relevant parts into account.
For membership organisations, however, its value goes beyond legal compliance. It provides a useful framework for looking at the member journey and identifying where processes, technology or ways of working might inadvertently create barriers.
Equality applies throughout the member journey
It can be easy to think about accessibility primarily in terms of websites or physical venues. The Code makes clear that an association’s responsibilities can extend much further.
They can begin before someone becomes a member.
The guidance specifically addresses the arrangements used to select members, including how membership opportunities are publicised, communications, application procedures and forms, and the timing, location and conduct of selection processes.
Once someone is a member, the scope remains broad. Associations must not unlawfully discriminate in the way members are given access to benefits, facilities or services, through the terms of their membership, by depriving them of membership, or by subjecting them to other detriment.
And “benefits, facilities or services” is not limited to physical facilities. The Code gives examples including:
- meetings and events
- equipment and facilities
- discount schemes
- journals and newsletters
- other material and non-material benefits of membership.
For a modern membership organisation, that potentially touches almost every part of the member experience: joining, communications, events, online services, voting, resources, networking and participation.
The important word is "anticipate"
One of the most useful sections for membership teams concerns reasonable adjustments for disabled people.
The Code makes clear that the duty is anticipatory.
Associations should proactively consider barriers that disabled people could face and take reasonable steps to address them. They should not simply wait until an individual member encounters a problem and asks for it to be fixed.
That duty can apply not only to existing members, but also to people seeking membership, associates and guests, including people who might wish to become members or are likely to be guests.
This changes the practical question from, “Can we accommodate someone if they ask?” to “Have we designed our processes so that foreseeable needs can be accommodated in the first place?”
That is a much more useful way to think about accessibility.
Your membership data can be part of the solution
There is an example in the Code that should particularly catch the attention of anyone responsible for membership technology.
It describes someone with a visual impairment who needs correspondence in Braille. Although they have previously communicated that requirement, they continue receiving printed letters and repeatedly have to request an alternative format because the organisation’s software cannot retain their communication requirement.
The Code explains that even subsequently supplying the Braille version may not be enough. Failing to have a mechanism capable of recording someone’s requirement for an alternative format could contribute to a failure to anticipate their needs and therefore a failure to make reasonable adjustments.
That has a clear operational lesson for membership organisations.
Accessibility information should not depend on one team member remembering it, an email buried in an inbox, a note in a spreadsheet or a member repeatedly explaining what they need.
Where appropriate, organisations should consider whether their systems and processes allow relevant requirements to be recorded securely and used consistently.
That might include things such as:
- accessible communication formats
- communication preferences
- event accessibility requirements
- support requirements during application or renewal
- adjustments required for meetings or other member activities.
Of course, organisations also need to consider data protection when recording information about members, particularly where information may reveal health data or other special category personal data. Accessibility and privacy need to work together rather than one being treated as a reason to ignore the other.
Events deserve particular attention
Events are specifically included among the membership benefits covered by the Code.
For associations, that makes event management an obvious area to review.
An accessible venue is important, but accessibility can start much earlier. Can someone identify and communicate an accessibility requirement when registering? Does that information reach the people organising the event? Can the organisation retain relevant requirements where appropriate, rather than making a member explain the same need every time they attend?
The same thinking applies to virtual and hybrid participation. If meetings, voting, CPD, networking or other important membership benefits increasingly take place online, digital accessibility becomes part of the overall member experience too.
The aim is not to predict every possible requirement. It is to build processes capable of responding consistently when different needs arise.
Look at communications, not just websites
Accessibility discussions often focus heavily on the website. That matters, but for a membership organisation it’s only one communication channel among many.
Members may interact through email, newsletters, renewal notices, event invitations, documents, online communities, and member portals.
The Code recommends planning in advance, reviewing existing reasonable adjustments, asking disabled people for their views, making people aware of available adjustments, training staff and keeping records of the steps taken.
That makes accessibility an organisational process rather than simply a website project.
A beautifully accessible website does not solve much if a member subsequently receives inaccessible documents, cannot complete an event registration, or repeatedly has to contact different members of staff to explain the same requirement.
Consistency matters
There is a broader lesson here for membership operations.
Many organisations already make considerable efforts to accommodate individual member needs. The weakness can be in how consistently those needs are understood across the organisation.
If information is held separately by membership, events, communications and finance teams, a member can have very different experiences depending on who they interact with.
Connected membership data can help reduce that fragmentation.
A central member record can give authorised teams appropriate visibility of relevant preferences and requirements. Integrated event management can reduce the need to transfer accessibility information manually between systems. Connected communications can make it easier to apply member preferences consistently.
Technology does not make an organisation compliant with the Equality Act. But the right technology can make good processes considerably easier to deliver consistently.
Five questions membership organisations should ask now
The new Code is a good prompt for associations to review the experience they currently provide.
Start with five questions:
- Can everyone navigate our membership application process?
Review forms, joining criteria, communications and any selection or approval processes for potential barriers. - Can members tell us what they need?
Consider whether there are clear ways to communicate accessibility and reasonable adjustment requirements without repeatedly contacting individual staff members. - Can we retain and act on that information appropriately?
Look at whether relevant requirements can be securely recorded and made available to the right people when needed. - Are our membership benefits genuinely accessible?
Think beyond the website. Review events, communications, publications, online resources, meetings, voting and other benefits members receive. - Are our processes proactive or reactive?
If accessibility only gets considered after someone complains or encounters a barrier, that is worth reviewing. The Code specifically emphasises anticipating reasonable adjustments rather than waiting for problems to arise.
A useful opportunity to review the member experience
The Equality Act itself is not new, and many well-run membership organisations will already have strong equality and accessibility practices in place.
But the updated Code provides a timely reason to test whether those policies translate into the everyday member experience.
That means looking at more than what your equality policy says.
Look at how someone applies. How they communicate with you. How their needs are recorded. How they register for an event. Whether they can access membership benefits. Whether different teams know what they need to know. And whether your technology supports those processes or makes them harder.
Because inclusive membership is not simply about responding well when someone encounters a barrier.
Increasingly, it is about designing the member experience so fewer of those barriers exist in the first place.
How VeryConnect can help
VeryConnect brings member data, communications, events, payments and engagement into one connected membership platform.
By reducing the information held across disconnected systems, membership organisations can create more consistent processes and give authorised teams a clearer view of the members they support.
If you’re reviewing how well your current systems support an accessible, connected member experience, talk to the VeryConnect team.