We wanted to promote this initiative – AccessAdvisr, where users like you and me, can add information on the access of your favourite place. Here’s Rob Trent the Founder talking about the project:
Thanks to BlueBadgeStyle for giving me this opportunity to share my Business AccessAdvisr – with you.
I have personal experience of living with a disability and overcoming accessibility challenges. I went to a ‘special’ school in the Seventies, but later found the determination to lead as independent a life as I can. Back then there were no such things as accessible trains or busses. Dropped kerbs were a rarity, and disabled people were often excluded from venues for being ‘fire risks’.
Things have improved greatly over the years. But where and when those improvements have happened have been difficult to identify. For example, I’ve heard comments like “Yes, itʼs accessible, thereʼs only two steps to navigate”, or “We have a ramp allowing access to our building”. However, on many occasions the reality differs greatly from the description. “Ramps” are more like ski slopes, and “access to our building” is usually past the cleaners equipment, through the kitchen and into the service lift.
Things are very often not quite what they seem.
So, from those frustrations AccessAdvisr was born. I wanted to create something for users who face the same challenges as me. AccessAdvisr provides a user-led real-world view of how easy-to-access different places are for disabled people. This is an opportunity for disabled people to tell it like it really is, and help others at the same time. Photographs can also be uploaded to the site.
The information on the site can help disabled people find great places to visit. AccessAdvisr can highlight and praise places where accessibility is good, and help places that aren’t so good to improve.
As the site reviews grow in number, AccessAdvisr hopes to anonymise and combine the information people contribute we will share it with ethical service providers so they can improve the quality and accessibility of services they provide for disabled people.
So, this is where you come in! We’d love for you to get involved. Registering with AccessAdvisr is easy, and rating places is even easier! Help us grow the information out there and in turn help us drive forward improvements in accessibility!
Rob Trent
We will be working with AccessAdvisr to add a ‘stylish’ element to their information! (ED. BBS)
Sounds like a great idea!