Building assistive technology with the people it is for.

Hackcessible brings disabled co-designers together with students of engineering, design, computer science, healthcare and social sciences to solve accessibility challenges. Multidisciplinary teams are supported through workshops and an annual make-a-thon to produce innovative solutions.

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See case studies

Since 2018

Running workshops and make-a-thons

International

Growing across institutions

Co-design lab

Live brief

End-users lead the brief as co-designers.

Teams prototype workable products, not just concepts.

Workshops → make-a-thon → case studies → chapters

What is Hackcessible?

A workshop and make-a-thon model for practical assistive technology.

Since 2018, Hackcessible has brought interdisciplinary teams together with people with disabilities to move from lived experience and access barriers to prototypes that can be tested, improved, and shared through local institutional chapters.

HACKCESSIBLE.ORG

Co-design, access, and practical innovation

A recognisable umbrella for local chapters

One identity for funders, partners, and chapters to rally around.

The logo now has a dedicated moment in the About section, reinforcing Hackcessible as a shared initiative rather than a single local event.

Workshops

Teams learn the context, define access challenges, and build shared understanding before the make-a-thon.

Workshops

Teams learn the context, define access challenges, and build shared understanding before the make-a-thon.

Make-a-thon

Engineers, designers, computer scientists, students, and others prototype with disabled co-designers leading the brief.

Make-a-thon

Engineers, designers, computer scientists, students, and others prototype with disabled co-designers leading the brief.

Products and proof

Promising products become case studies, institutional learning, and the basis for support from partners and funders.

Products and proof

Promising products become case studies, institutional learning, and the basis for support from partners and funders.

What makes us different?

End-users are not interview subjects. They are project leaders.

Disabled collaborators help shape every part of Hackcessible, from workshops to the make-a-thon, so products are grounded in everyday needs and more likely to be useful beyond the event.

Co-design

Lived experience sets the agenda

The brief starts with everyday access challenges identified by the person who experiences them.

Interdisciplinary

Teams mix design, engineering, and research

Participants bring complementary skills, making it possible to test both desirability and buildability.

Useful outcomes

Products are judged by practical value

The goal is not novelty for its own sake, but prototypes that can support real everyday needs.

Local chapters, shared umbrella

A model that can grow across institutions while staying rooted in local communities.

Hackcessible is already running across institutions internationally. The umbrella site gives funders and partner universities one clear place to understand the initiative, review case studies, and connect with local sites such as Sheffield.

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Visit Sheffield

Hackcessible Sheffield

hackcessible.sheffield.ac.uk

Hackcessible India

Nationwide competition for secondary schools

Hackcessible Kenya

A collaboration between Aga Khan University and Kenyatta University in Nairobi.