Section 2: The benefits of providing an inclusive experience
Top Tips
The spending power of disabled people and their households is called the Purple Pound. The annual tourism Purple Pound in England alone is estimated to be worth £14.6 billion.
There is a collective responsibility to remove disabling barriers in society. Aim for continuous progress rather than perfection.
All businesses have a legal duty to not discriminate against disabled people under the Equality Act 2010. Information and links to additional guidance in this section will help ensure you are getting it right.
Why accessibility matters
Ethically and morally, providing an accessible and inclusive experience is the right thing to do for any business. But it can also be financially savvy, support legal compliance and encourage positivity, ensuring you reach and engage with a diverse, interesting audience.
In this country almost one in four people are disabled (Department for Work and Pensions). Many of your existing customers are likely to be in that group but you may not realise this. Impairments such as hearing loss, arthritis, epilepsy and autism are not visible and some customers won’t disclose these.
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Did you know?
Your customer base is also getting older and with age comes the increasing likelihood of health conditions such as poorer eyesight and back issues. As of 2021, the average age in the UK is 40.7 years, and by 2040, nearly one in seven people are projected to be aged over 75 (Office for National Statistics).
Case study 1
Broadgate Farm Cottages
“We have a regular stream of guests who require a more accessible cottage for their holiday. They tend to be loyal guests and return; if they know that the cottages work well for them they will come back for a stress-free stay. Our number of guests with accessibility requirements has almost quadrupled over recent years.”
Digital and social accessibility
Access and inclusion does not just refer to the built environment. As first impressions of businesses are increasingly made online, digital accessibility of websites and social media channels is just as valuable.
Whether over the phone, email or in-person, ‘social access’, a positive perception of disability within your business is also essential. For an end-to-end experience to be inclusive your physical, social and digital access must be well considered for every customer.
The scope of disability and access requirements is vast and aspirational guidance is constantly improving. Becoming comfortable and confident with accessibility is therefore a continuous learning curve. Fear not, this is not something you need to be an expert in.
Don’t worry about being ‘fully accessible’ – it’s not possible.
Two things are true of access and inclusion. Firstly, no one solution will perfectly cater for every individual’s access requirements; the term ‘fully accessible’ is misleading as it does not exist and cannot be achieved. Therefore, every business, no matter how big or small, new or mature, should be aiming for continuous progress, rather than perfection.
Secondly, we all have a role to play in ensuring the built environment, social interactions and our websites and social media channels are as accessible and inclusive as possible for as many people as possible, be they friends and family members, customers or colleagues.
The good news for businesses wanting to target this market is that demand for accessible accommodation and activities outstrips the current supply. Disabled travellers tend to be loyal as - with fewer businesses providing accessible features and facilities - they often return to places that do. Read on to find out more about how you can encourage these customers to choose you by valuing them and providing a confident, honest and inclusive welcome.
Fact
Did you know?
430,000 British people with an impairment did not take a domestic trip between April 2017 and March 2018 due to the lack of accessibility provision. If each one had taken a trip this would have created £116.7million in extra revenue for tourism businesses in England. (VisitEngland Latent Demand Research 2018).
45% of people who identify as disabled did not take a holiday in England in the last 12 months that involved staying away from home for one night or more, compared to 35% of non-disabled people (Participation Survey 2023).
The value of the Purple Pound
There is a common misconception that disabled people are not commercially valuable customers. Not only is this false, but it often prevents businesses within the tourism industry from reaching their full potential by engaging with, and catering for, a diverse customer base.
The Purple Pound represents the spending power of disabled people and is currently worth an estimated £274 billion to UK businesses per year.
Relating to annual tourism in England, the total expenditure generated by those with an impairment – travelling independently or within a group – is estimated to be £14.6 billion (VisitEngland, 2023).
While access and inclusion are a legal responsibility and the right thing to do ethically; the Purple Pound means that it’s great for business. People with health conditions and impairments tend to take longer holiday breaks than average and therefore tend to spend more money per trip.
Additionally, one in four domestic holiday-makers with access requirements return to accommodation they have visited before, either because it has the specialist facilities required and/or it removes the stress and effort of trying to find somewhere different (VisitEngland Consumer Research, 2022).
Take a look at this tourism data on the Purple Pound for more information.
Case study 2
Hotel Brooklyn
Based in Manchester, Hotel Brooklyn’s investment in accessible facilities delivered additional revenue of £217,000 in 2022, the hotel’s first full trading year. Whilst £132,000 of this came from accessible overnight accommodation bookings, a further £85,000 was created from accessible events bookings, from charity dinners to weddings.
Something to consider
A moment for reflection
Is the accessible tourism market worth more than you thought? How might the Purple Pound benefit your business?
Removing barriers
The physical, digital and social barriers in society can often be more disabling to people than their impairments and medical conditions. A barrier can be visible, or relate to the lack of a service or provision. Barriers can also be attitudinal and cause great amounts of exclusion.
For example, many blind people would find online hotel searches much easier and more enjoyable if all websites were accessible to screen-reader users. Similarly, if step-free access was a given on all public transport networks, many wheelchair users would be able to travel with independence and autonomy. And if hearing loops came as standard at every reception desk and all staff were trained in deaf awareness, those with hearing loss would likely find the arrival process at hotels, restaurants and visitor attractions much less frustrating.
Note how all these situations remove barriers and result in positive experiences for many people – without any aspect of their impairment or medical condition changing. This shows us that we all have a responsibility to look at our surrounding environments, the services we offer, the ways in which we promote ourselves, and the language we use to identify barriers and, if possible, remove them.
The Equality Act 2010 and your legal responsibilities
Applying to all businesses, the Equality Act 2010 protects individuals with one or more of nine protected characteristics, including age, gender, race and disability. By law, customers with these protected characteristics have a right to access accommodation, restaurants and tourist attractions and be treated no less favourably to those without. In order to provide a fair and positive experience for all customers, you may have a duty to provide reasonable adjustments.
You must not discriminate against disabled customers by refusing access to them, their companions, mobility equipment or assistance dogs as this would be considered unlawful. For more information, please visit our information in the Pink Book Online relating specifically to disabled customers.
Further information and guidance on the Equality Act and reasonable adjustments can also be found on the Equality and Human Rights Commission website.
Fact
Did you know?
The Equality Act 2010 requires service providers to provide auxiliary aids, which can include special pieces of equipment to provide additional support, at no cost to the disabled customer. This type of ‘reasonable adjustment’ is required to avoid putting disabled people at a substantial disadvantage compared with people who are not disabled.
Businesses should not state in their communications that they are compliant with the Equality Act 2010 (or the previous Disability Discrimination Act (DDA)) as it cannot be guaranteed.
