ACCESS 08 Easy Ways to Win

22nd September 2008, Bristol Marriott Royal Hotel

The Easy Ways to Win conference on the 22nd September followed on from the success of the 2007 conference at the Weymouth and Portland Sailing academy by proving to be just as useful and informative.  The event hosted by South West RDA in conjunction with South West Tourism and Tourism for All provided advice and guidance to businesses involved in the tourism industry and the wider visitor economy on how they could take simple steps to improve their offer to visitors with disabilities and their families.

It focused on the increasing business case for preparing the industry to meet the requirements of this market in the lead up to the 2012 Olympic and Paralympics Games and beyond when the eyes of the world will be on the UK as a whole.  The Paralympics will increase the focus on disability issues and participation in disability sport across the board.  It will highlight our attitudes to disabilities and the service we provide to people with special requirements both across the UK and within the South West.

The Paralympics will provide an opportunity for destinations and businesses to build the markets of the future by welcoming athletes with disabilities, their families, friends and supporters as well as the wider audience of those considered to have a disability.  With an ageing population it is imperative that every tourism business in the South West learns more about how they can ensure that these guests are appropriately catered for.  Key speakers at this years event included Keith Richards from ABTA, Danny Crates 800m Paralympic Champion and Richard Grey from Deaf Awareness.

Danny Crates recently carried the flag at the opening of the Paralympics in Beijing and was an inspiration to us all with tales of his determination and ability to set his goals higher and higher and strive to make great achievements in the face of adversity.  Since his accident, which caused him to lose his left arm, Danny has gone on to become a Paralympic Champion, a European Champion and Paralympic World Cup winner.  He also became the only known arm amputee playing club rugby in the country as well as a qualified diving instructor.  A career move which found him swimming in a tank with 20 sharks four times a day whilst working at the Great Yarmouth Sea life Centre!

Keith Richards focussed on the business case for change.  He helped define what is meant when we refer to ‘Disabled' people.  The DDA defines a person with a disability as someone who has: "a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities". 

In contrast the 2006 EC regulation 1107/2006 defines a person with a disability as: "any person whose mobility when using transport is reduced due to any physical disability (sensory or locomotory, permanent or temporary), intellectual disability or impairment, or any other cause of disability, or age, and whose situation needs appropriate attention and the adaptation to his or her particular needs of the service made available to all passengers" - Art 2(a). 

What is important to note here is that the EU states that a person can have a disability temporarily so this would include, for example, a young person who has broken their leg but in general is fit and healthy.  Also our aging population with people who no longer find it quite as easy to get up the stairs of read the small print on menus and booking forms - it comes to us all! 

Speakers at the event went on to outline the business case for catering for this market which is by no means a niche market.  Around 20% of UK's adult population has some form of disability.  Furthermore nearly half of disabled people are over state pension age, this means that these people are not tied to school holidays or weekends to take their breaks.  By making realistic adjustments to become accessible to this market businesses can go some way to reducing seasonality.

The collective spending power of disabled people in the UK is around £80 billion a year.  Many of these people are grandparents with money to spend taking grandchildren on holiday.  If the children enjoy the holiday as well imagine the repeat business from parents!  The number of people over 65 in Europe almost doubled between 1960-2001 and by 2009 there will be 2m more people over 60 in the UK than in 2004.

It's not just people with disabilities that require accessible venues.  More and more events organisers are required to make events accessible regardless of whether their guests have any specific needs.  Mums with buggies need to be able to access attractions and accommodation, people with luggage, it's ensuring that businesses think about ‘design for all'.  Accessibility is also closely aligned with quality. 

The National Accessibility Scheme is run along side the National Quality Assessment Scheme and is complementary to it.  By providing a quality service businesses are ensuring they are fit for purpose and are meeting the needs of the consumer.  More information about the National Accessibility Scheme and all the training and expertise Tourism for All can provide can be found on their website www.tourismforall.org.uk.

In April 2008 it became part of the National Quality Assessment scheme to have an Access Statement.  These access statements provide an honest and accurate description of the services and facilities on offer to a visitor.  They enable visitors to make an informed choice about the provider that they want to use.  They are also a useful tool for businesses themselves.  By completing an audit statement many businesses have surprised themselves about how accessible their establishment already is!
Further information about access statements can be found at www.visitbritain.com/accessstatements.

Ross Caladine from VisitBritain also advised the conference about PAS 88.  This is a useful tool which provides information for large hotel premises and hotel chains seeking to meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1995.
Again you can learn more about PAS 88 at www.bsigroup.com/pass88.

The afternoon sessions gave delegates the chance to see the world through the eyes of someone with a visual impairment.  RNIB provided delegates with glasses which simulated how the world looks to a person with impairments such as glaucoma or cataracts.  By seeing things through their eyes it was possible to get a feeling of how things such as small typeface and bad communications can make someone suffering from these impairments feel isolated in the able bodied world we take for granted.  The RNIB is there to offer help and advice to businesses as well as people who suffer from sight problems.
For more information about the RNIB, the work they do and the services they offer go to www.rnib.org.uk.

Richard Gray, who himself suffers from a hearing impairment, gave an insight into the life of a deaf person or person who struggles to hear with clarity.  In this world of background noise of car engines and mobile phones it's no wonder we can't hear the voices for all the sound.  Like people with physical impairments the number of people with hearing impairments is also growing.  With an ageing population there are far more people who need a little extra help in communicating.  The delegates were given the opportunity to find out how hard it is to lip read and were given a taster of sign language.

Again, little things like having a pen and paper handy on a reception desk, ensuring staff are trained to communicate clearly and in plain English can make a venue far more accessible for a person with hearing impairment.  An excellent training course recommended by Richard was the Welcome All course.  Welcome All is just one of a suite of courses offered by Welcome to Excellence ( www.welcometoexcellence.co.uk ). Welcome All provides participants with practical advice and cost-effective ideas to enhance service quality for customers with disabilities and specific needs.  

All those that attended the conference will shortly hear from Tourism for All about their free 12 month membership.  As reminder this membership includes:

Free quarterly newsletter (worth £5)
Free copy of Easy Access Guide (£9.99)
Use of TFA logo
Access to the online forum
Discount of 25% on business support
Free advice worth £30
Discount on destination toolkit/audit or audit training
Discount on self audit toolkit (saving £15)
Free ad in newsletter on joining (£49) plus discounts on further advertising on website, and guides
Free access to the new online e-learning platform TFA Training for training hospitality staff in welcoming disabled guests (worth min £35 per person)

Download the presentations from the event

Royal National Institute for the Blind - Eleanor Ellison
Tourism For All - Jenny Stephenson
Disability Awareness - Keith Richards
Atlantis Apartments - Pauline Roberts
Visit Britain Update - Ross Calladine

Download Richard Gray's Handouts

Supplier list
Deaf & Hard of hearing checklist

For more information about quality schemes, access advice and training please visit

www.visitbritain.com
www.live-tourism.com
www.welcometoexcellence.co.uk
www.rnib.org.uk
www.tourismforall.org.uk
www.southwestrda.org.uk
www.equalityhumanrights.com