UK Conference AV Checklist: 5 Venue Checks for Safety and Access

A reliable conference AV checklist guarantees four things: working audio and visual kit, a venue that can safely power it, a tested run-through before doors open, and accessibility features that actually work. The single next step is to book a venue visit with your AV technician to confirm power and access, something we recommend as standard practice before confirming any other booking.

TL;DR:

• During the venue visit, record mains capacity and breaker ratings, rigging points, loading access, cable routes, and who can open electrical cupboards.
• Run the dress rehearsal with the actual presenter and laptop, then test embedded video, subtitles, and any hybrid stream before delegates arrive.
• If loudspeakers sit within 3 metres of delegates, arrange stewarding or barriers; temporary power also needs a competent electrician and completion certificates.
• Keep backup microphones, adaptors, batteries, and a presentation loaded on a spare laptop; label cables and agree immediate fixes with the technician.

Table of Contents

• Essential AV equipment checklist: audio, visual, lighting and spares
• Pre-event planning and venue visit checklist: power, rigging, sightlines and technical contacts
• Setup, technical run and presenter checks: the run-sheet items to schedule and test
• Safety, accessibility and electrical compliance: essential standards and checks
• Troubleshooting and on-the-day checks: quick fixes and escalation contacts
• Practical tips and proof points from Connections Entertainment
• Designer perspective: prioritise accessibility and tested simplicity
• How Connections Entertainment can help: conference equipment hire and AV support
• FAQ
• Sources
• Key standards and guidance

Essential AV equipment checklist: audio, visual, lighting and spares

Every conference needs a core kit list that covers sound, screens and light, plus enough spares to survive a failure mid-session. Missing one item rarely cancels an event, but it does mean someone scrambling for a cable while delegates wait.

For audio, confirm a PA system sized to the room, a mixer with enough channels for all microphones, handheld and lavalier mics for speakers, a separate monitor mix if there’s a stage, DI boxes for any line-level sources, and at least one spare microphone. For visuals, you need projectors or screens matched to the room’s sightlines, confidence monitors for presenters, the right adaptors for every laptop that will plug in, and a spare laptop with the presentation pre-loaded. Lighting needs key and fill lights, DMX control if cues are involved, coloured gels where branding matters, and spare lamps.

• Audio: PA, mixer, handheld and lavalier mics, monitor mix, DI boxes, spare mic
• Visual: projector or screen, confidence monitors, adaptors, spare laptop with backup files
• Lighting: key and fill lights, DMX controller, gels, spare lamps
• Support: labelled cables, gaffer tape, cable ramps, charged batteries, secure flight cases

Our types of event equipment for venues guide breaks down what most venues already hold in-house versus what you’ll likely need to hire separately.

Pre-event planning and venue visit checklist: power, rigging, sightlines and technical contacts

A venue visit is where theory meets wiring. Walk the room with your technician and record what the space can actually deliver, not what the brochure claims.

1. Check mains availability and breaker ratings, and confirm whether a temporary supply or generator is needed for the load.
2. Note rigging points, stage dimensions, load-in doors and available storage for cases and spares.
3. Record the venue’s technical contact details, including who holds keys to electrical cupboards on the day.
4. Test any fixed hearing loop or built-in PA system, and request completion certificates for any temporary electrical installation, in line with HSE electrical safety guidance.
5. Map cable runs against emergency egress routes, and confirm parking or loading access for hire vehicles.

Our corporate event planning tips cover how to sequence these checks alongside catering, registration and room-turnaround logistics.

Setup, technical run and presenter checks: the run-sheet items to schedule and test

A good run-sheet moves from line-check to build, to a presenter run, to a full dress rehearsal, finishing with final checks before doors open. Skipping the dress rehearsal is the most common reason sessions start late.

1. Run a soundcheck with proper gain staging, keeping house levels within HSE’s recommended exposure range for audience comfort and safety, as set out in HSE noise guidance.
2. Check projector brightness against room lighting, confirm aspect ratio, and play any embedded video or subtitles in full.
3. Set lighting cues, check lux levels on the presenter’s face rather than just the backdrop, and label every DMX channel.
4. Brief presenters on accepted slide formats, readable fonts and contrast, and where their backup file sits if the main one fails.
5. For hybrid sessions, test the encoder, stream key, latency and camera-to-audio sync well before the first delegate logs in.

Pro Tip: Run the dress rehearsal with the actual presenter and their actual laptop, not a stand-in, since file compatibility problems rarely show up any other way.

Safety, accessibility and electrical compliance: essential standards and checks

Compliance checks belong on the same checklist as sound and lighting, not as an afterthought. Confirm hearing loops are working, not just switched on, and arrange portable assistive listening where a fixed loop isn’t available. Live captioning should be tested on the actual platform beforehand, and BSL interpretation arranged where the audience needs it, reflecting the reasonable adjustments expected under Equality Act 2010 guidance.

• Require a competent electrician and completion certificates for any temporary power supply, referencing BS 7909 and BS 7671 standards
• Keep loudspeakers away from the public where possible, adding stewards or barriers if speakers sit within 3 metres of delegates
• Protect cable runs, fit RCDs, label isolators clearly, and appoint a competent person to oversee temporary power

If loudspeakers sit within 3 metres of the audience, additional controls such as stewarding or barriers are recommended under HSE noise guidance, a detail worth flagging to your AV supplier before the room is finalised.

Troubleshooting and on-the-day checks: quick fixes and escalation contacts

Problems on the day are rarely dramatic, but they need a fast, calm response. A short diagnostic sequence, agreed in advance with your technician, keeps a glitch from becoming a delay.

• Swap to the spare mic, restart the playback device, or switch to the backup laptop as an immediate first move
• For audio hum or dropout, isolate the channel, swap the input, or try a ground lift before assuming equipment failure
• For a dead screen, switch inputs, test an alternate cable or adaptor, then fall back to local recording if nothing resolves it
• For a dropped stream, switch to a mobile modem or alternate RTMP endpoint, and keep an escalation contact list on hand throughout

Practical tips and proof points from Connections Entertainment

We offer conference equipment hire and AV production support that cover sound and lighting packages suited to various conference formats. Three habits consistently prevent problems: label every cable at both ends, bring spares for anything that plugs in, and confirm each presenter’s backup file before the session starts.

Designer perspective: prioritise accessibility and tested simplicity

Accessibility planned from the outset avoids both exclusion and a last-minute scramble for loop systems or captioning. A simple rig that’s been tested twice beats a complex one that’s been tested once, every time.

— Darren Flynn

How Connections Entertainment can help: conference equipment hire and AV support

We provide sound, lighting and screen packages for conference rooms of many sizes, and technical crew who can assist with site visits. Our conference equipment hire and AV production hire services cover everything on this checklist, from PA and projection to lighting design detailed in our sound and lighting for corporate events page. If your venue is licensed but unfamiliar, our corporate services team can also arrange hosts or added production support. Get in touch to arrange a site survey and confirm power, rigging and access before your next conference.

FAQ

What does AV stand for in event planning?

AV stands for audio visual, covering the sound, screen, projection and lighting equipment used to run presentations, performances and hybrid sessions. In event planning, it includes both the physical kit and the technical crew who operate it.

What should I include on my conference event checklist?

Your checklist should cover core AV equipment, venue power and access, a tested run-through, and accessibility provisions such as hearing loops or captioning. It should also include safety checks referencing HSE electrical safety guidance and a troubleshooting contact list for the day itself.

What is an equipment checklist?

An equipment checklist is a documented list of items needed for an event, used to confirm what’s being hired, what the venue already provides, and what still needs sourcing. For conferences, it typically spans audio, visual, lighting and backup items such as spare cables and batteries.

What equipment is needed for an event?

Most events need a PA system, microphones, a mixer, a projector or screens, lighting, and enough spare cables and adaptors to cover failures. The exact list depends on room size, audience numbers and whether the session includes a hybrid or streamed component.

Sources

• Electrical safety – HSE
• Equality Act 2010 guidance
• Noise at events – HSE
• Electrical safety at places of entertainment – Guidance Note GS50

Key standards and guidance

• Electrical safety – HSE
• Equality Act 2010 guidance
• Noise at events – HSE
• Electrical safety at places of entertainment – Guidance Note GS50

Recommended

• Types of event equipment for venues: 2026 guide
• Corporate event planning tips for UK planners
• The role of venue layout in entertainment events
• Venue capacity for entertainment events: a practical guide

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