Accessible Britain is a new and exciting destination website that help people living with disability enjoy fuller and more active lifestyles.
Established by Stewart White, from Basingstoke. Accessible Britain’s vision is to create a community of like-minded people to share information about the accessibility of public places, venues, locations and transport interchanges. The audience, many of whom face the daily challenge of disability, will be given the facility to share experiences and opinions. To report beyond the “wheelchair” symbol and help others find the best places to go based on actual user experience.
As a former college tutor, Stewart is an excellent people-person with heaps of passion and drive. With Accessible Britain, Stewart now wants to create a one-stop guide for hotels, and places to visit that are suitable for disabled people. “Our aim is to become the destination website for the disabled community as well as their families and carers in the UK seeking to read and share genuine experiential opinions of venues, locations, stations and experiences throughout the UK.”
Stewart had always been very active, playing football and various sports. After becoming a wheelchair user, he began to re-evaluate his life and how he approached it, in order to grasp at the best experiences. “For me, it was working out how I could use four wheels and where, and there’s nothing worse than going somewhere and finding out you can’t get in! I was inspired to start this venture originally, after I went to the Isle of Wight on holiday in 2012 and the hotel I stayed in’s idea of disabled access was two planks of wood!”
When discussing what he wants out of those interested in writing for Accessible Britain (because it’ll only be as big as all the people involved!), editor Stewart says that he’s not interested in 100 per cent perfect writing, just real and honest experiences that other dedicated users can comment on, and relate to: “I want to hear from other people that have had good and bad experiences in hotels, in places they’ve eaten, and even on trains when it comes to accessibility!”
It is hoped that, in a similar fashion to the Michelin Star system, Accessible Britain’s reviews will eventually become a well-respected mark of honour for businesses within the travel and tourism industry. “I want Accessible Britain to be the first place that disabled people will go to for information on places, wherever they are coming from.”
For more information visit: http://www.accessiblebritain.co.uk and contact Stewart: info@accessiblebritain.co.uk if you’re interested in contributing to the website as a writer.