The findings of a new survey of the
UK's top 100 most-visited tourist attractions have been published today by
Vitalise, in the form of an easy online reference guide for people with
disabilities.
The study is the culmination of
several months of research by Vitalise to gain an accurate picture of the state
of accessibility across the UK's most popular visitor attractions, as well as
to provide an invaluable online guide for people with disabilities.
The Vitalise study found that:
3 out of 10 (27%) did not have
essential accessibility information on their websites;
Only 17% had all their staff trained
in disability awareness;
Only 15% were equipped with hoists –
an indispensable item for many disabled visitors
At the same time as flagging up where
more work on accessibility is still clearly needed, Vitalise also cautiously
welcomed other findings suggesting gradual progress:
8 out of 10 venues (82%) had overall
Vitalise accessibility scores over 70%;
Over a third (36%) of the venues
surveyed had a ratio of disabled to non-disabled toilets of 20% or more –
greater than the proportion of disabled people in the general population
(19%**);
8 out of 10 venues had fully accessible approaches from outside areas;
8 out of 10 venues had fully accessible approaches from outside areas;
Among the examples of best practice
commended by Vitalise is Tate Modern in London – the world's most visited art
gallery - which came out on top of the charity's table with a score of 94.3%,
while tied in second place are the Imperial War Museum London, the Museum of
Liverpool and the National Railway Museum in York, all on 92%, with Tate
Britain close behind on 91.8%.
However, as people around the UK plan
half term trips to local visitor attractions, a recent Vitalise survey of its
guests found that 65% of people with disabilities have decided against visiting
a tourist attraction because they found their accessibility information to be
insufficient, confusing or difficult to obtain.
This highlights a need for greater
clarity, thoroughness and ease of access in the information tourist attractions
provide for their disabled visitors, suggests Vitalise.
In the light of its research,
Vitalise is calling for more effort on the part of the UK's visitor attractions
to become fully accessible and easier access to key accessibility information
online, in order to ease the worries of people with disabilities. They risk
losing out on a share of the estimated £212 billion annual value of the 'Purple
Pound' if they don't take accessibility seriously, Vitalise is warning.
At the same time the charity has
launched #AccessNow, a new campaign to enlist the support of people with
disabilities in its push for urgent improvements to accessibility.
Vitalise is asking people with
disabilities to share their experiences of visiting tourist attractions and
other public venues via an online form on the charity's website
.
People are also being encouraged to
share their experiences with Vitalise via social media by posting photos,
videos and updates on Facebook and Twitter, with the hashtag #AccessNow
Don't forget to also add your reviews here.
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