Laying the foundations: Destination audit
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Commissioning a destination audit can be used to support your Kick-Start or Enhanced development programmes
Working in partnership with public realm stakeholders is important to achieve this
A destination audit can help inform your action plan for accessible destination development
Understand destination audits
A destination accessibility audit can be valuable at any stage in your accessible tourism development, either as a stand-alone activity or part of a wider destination plan in partnership with other stakeholders, such as a Local Authority. It can also be used to support your work in either the Kick-Start or Enhanced programmes.
This type of audit would not cover a whole LVEP region or county in detail, but may cover:
- a city or town;
- a ‘honeypot’ within a destination;
- a combination of the above.
Commission a destination audit
Commissioning a destination audit can help you to identify businesses which have taken positive action, some of whom may have been previously overlooked. An audit also helps to locate potential barriers within the public realm and identify areas for improvement, such as dropped kerbs that may need to be introduced, more suitable seating provided, or tactile paving installed. Working in partnership with your Local Authority and the wider public realm on this is therefore important and may also enable you to tap into alternative sources of funding.
An audit will help inform an action plan for your destination over the next five to ten years and is crucial if the tourism value chain is to become truly inclusive, barrier free and enhance the visitor experience for everyone. It can also help you identify potential businesses to be involved in any accessible tourism development programme you undertake.
As always, it is vital that disabled people are involved in audits where possible. You will want to employ a professional to undertake this, but the guidance given in the Access Audit Toolkit published by Accentuate may also be useful.
“We have some real successes and pioneering attractions in the sector including Alton Towers, The Trentham Estate and National Memorial Arboretum.
We are going to commission an audit later in the year as part of our activities, as accessibility and inclusivity have come out as key strands in our visitor economy action plan and something that our operators want us to focus on.”
Richard Swancott, Digital Marketing Executive, Enjoy Staffordshire
