Induction Loops Explained: Making Your Tours Accessible to All

Accessibility is increasingly not just good practice — it's a legal obligation. If you run guided tours, operate a visitor attraction, or manage a venue where guided experiences take place, understanding induction loops and how they fit into your audio setup could make a significant difference to your visitors and your compliance with the law.

What is an induction loop?

An induction loop (also called a neck loop or hearing loop) is a small device worn around the neck that receives an audio signal wirelessly and transmits it directly to a hearing aid via its telecoil (T-coil) setting.

Rather than using a standard earphone or headphone, a hearing aid user simply switches their hearing aid to the "T" setting. The loop picks up the audio from your tour guide system's receiver and delivers it directly into their hearing aid — clear, amplified, and tailored to their specific hearing needs.

No earphone required. No awkward fitting. No compromise on audio quality.

How does it connect to a tour guide system?

An induction loop attaches to the 3.5mm headphone output of a standard tour guide receiver — the same socket you'd normally plug an earphone into. The loop then hangs around the participant's neck and works automatically once their hearing aid is switched to the T setting.

This means you don't need a separate or specialist system for hearing aid users. Your existing tour guide system already supports it — you simply swap out the standard earphone for an induction loop for any participant who needs one.

Who needs one?

Approximately 1 in 6 people in the UK have some degree of hearing loss, and many of them use hearing aids equipped with telecoils. For these visitors, a standard earphone either sits uncomfortably alongside their hearing aid or doesn't work with it at all.

An induction loop solves this cleanly and discreetly. The participant uses their own hearing aid — which they've already configured for their specific hearing profile — and simply receives the tour audio through it.

This is particularly relevant for:

• Museum and heritage site tours where visitor demographics include a significant proportion of older adults
• Corporate and factory tours where visitors may include employees with hearing loss
• Educational tours where inclusivity is a key requirement
• Any publicly-accessible guided experience where the Equality Act applies

The legal angle

Under the Equality Act 2010, service providers in the UK have a legal duty to make reasonable adjustments to ensure disabled people can access their services. Failing to provide hearing loop access where it could reasonably be expected to make a difference is a potential area of non-compliance.

For visitor attractions, museums, heritage sites, and tour operators, providing induction loops as part of your tour guide kit is a straightforward, inexpensive way to meet this obligation. The cost of a single induction loop is modest — far less than the cost of dealing with an accessibility complaint.

What to stock

We recommend keeping a small supply of induction loops available as part of your standard tour kit — enough to cover perhaps 10–15% of a typical group, which more than covers the likely need in most situations.

Our MONACOR NL-90 Induction Neck Loop connects directly to any standard 3.5mm receiver output and delivers a clear, reliable signal to any hearing aid with a T-coil setting. It's lightweight, comfortable to wear, and straightforward to use — no instruction needed beyond "hang this around your neck and switch your hearing aid to T."

At under £25 per unit, they're one of the most cost-effective accessibility investments you can make.

A note on awareness

It's worth briefing your guides to offer induction loops proactively rather than waiting for visitors to ask. Many hearing aid users are hesitant to raise their needs, and a simple "we also have hearing loops available if anyone would find that helpful" at the start of a tour makes a significant difference to the experience of anyone who needs one.

Accessibility is often as much about awareness and communication as it is about equipment.

View the MONACOR NL-90 Induction Loop or browse our full accessories range.

Related reading: How to choose the right tour guide system for your group size · Tour guide systems for factory and industrial tours: what to look for