Accessibility: Understanding, progress and opportunities

There can be no doubt that the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) has led to a major shift in awareness and provision of tourism services for people with disabilities in the UK. However, actual provision still often falls short. Moreover, there remains a large untapped market of people with access needs, including older people, who lack sufficient trust in having their needs met.

This article looks at the opportunities that exist, especially in view of hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012, and what more needs to be done.

Waking up to the size of the market

Despite the repeated statistic of 10 million UK disabled people with an £80 billion consumer spend, the industry is still only waking up to the full size of the market.

Of the 10 million, it has been quoted that 2.5 million disabled people travel regularly (source: www.tourismforall.org.uk/Advice-for-Tourism-Businesses.html.) If an additional 20% were encouraged or able to take holidays, this would represent an additional two million potential tourism consumers. This would benefit domestic tourism, as disabled people are more likely to stay in the UK.

Growth in the market is related to the ageing population, as disability increases with age. For the first time in 2008, those over retirement age numbered more than those aged under 16. There are now 11 million people over retirement age (2.5 million over 50s). Moreover, as the baby boomers reach retirement age, they are not expected to retire quietly and stay home. Another growth area is travellers over 85, along with the growing market for grandparents holidaying with grandchildren.

When it comes to overseas visitors, the figures are no less substantial. Of the 30 million disabled adults in the USA:three out of five have travelled outside the US in their lifetime26% (8 million) have travelled to Englandin the last two years, 69% have travelled at least once: made up of 3.9 million business travellers, 20 million tourists and 4.4 million business plus tourism. (Source: Research among adults with disabilities: travel and hospitality (2005), Open Doors organisation.)In Europe, 25% of the population (124 million) have disabilities. Of these it is estimated that 70% are physically and financially able to travel (87 million). Revenue from disabled tourists could be 166 billion Euros. (Source: as above.)

Understanding requirements

Many small companies hold the misconception that disabled access simply means wheelchair access. This has meant proprietors, whose properties have no scope for a level or ramped entrance, ground floor room or lift, or where the cost of installing such facilities exceeds their ability to afford them, have concluded the DDA does not apply to them.

This is not true – it does. This is a message that organisations such as Tourism for All and VisitEngland are at pains to correct. (See top tips on www.tourismforall.org.uk and VisitEngland’s Easy Does It pamphlet.) There are many minor low-cost adaptations that can be made to make a place usable for sections of the population otherwise excluded – the production of large print menus for example.

Action needed

The DCMS Stakeholder Forum on Accessible Tourism identified three main areas where progress is needed to deliver in 2012 and after.

Open Britain

Tourism for All has linked with the disability charity RADAR to create Open Britain, a new comprehensive information initiative which seeks to achieve the one-stop-shop that disabled people need. It will combine a printed guide, website and major consumer awareness campaign. The intention is to create a powerful brand which disabled visitors can identify.

Membership of the NAS will still be the flagship, but in order to encourage a broad range of participants in Open Britain, there will be a level of self-certificated entries. These will be based on a questionnaire, supported by an access statement. A group of able-bodied and disabled people will assist with on-site random spot checks to uphold accuracy of information.

Open Britain will benefit consumers by offering greater opportunities for more disabled and vulnerable people (and their families) to participate in travel and tourism.

For business, the small cost of joining Open Britain will easily be repaid both in publicity and in the benefits of advice, assistance and online e-learning which is offered, as membership of Tourism for All is also included.

Tourism businesses can join Open Britain online on www.openbritain.net.

Conclusion

The cycle of market failure must be broken. Providers need to recognise the value of accessible facilities and to be able to interact confidently with disabled people. Consumers need to know about facilities and use them.

With current initiatives and the upcoming Paralympics, there genuinely has never been a better time to tap into this unrealised market and to create accessible facilities that will provide the benchmark for the future.

This feature is an edited version of an article by Jenifer Littman which originally appeared on VisitBritain’s subscription website Tourism Insights. Jenifer Littman is chief executive of Tourism for All UK.