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VisitEngland Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses

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Young electric wheelchair user holding an ice cream cone with mum in background at the seaside

Introduction

  • Accessible tourism can help businesses in many ways by tapping into under-served and growing markets, differing customer groups and local communities. Wherever you are in your accessibility journey − and however new or well-established your business is − this Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses aims to give you the practical hints and tips, and the reassurance and confidence, to move forward inclusively. 

    As a best-in-class resource for the tourism industry, this toolkit introduces the legal, commercial and ethical importance of accessibility, before providing guidance related to:

    • Customer groups and how to remove barriers.
    • How to provide an inclusive welcome with integrity and empathy at its heart.
    • The availability of inclusive features and facilities (whether physical, digital or operational).
    • How to market your accessibility to potential and existing customers.
    • How to become a more inclusive employer and create an inclusive internal culture within your business.
    • Measuring success and ensuring accessibility journey accountability.
    • The support bodies, influencers, awards and schemes to help you best communicate and celebrate your accessibility.

    This holistic toolkit consolidates and replaces a range of standalone VisitEngland guides on accessible and inclusive tourism, creating one comprehensive resource. This document is under regular review by VisitEngland and the expert authoring team at Mima, with feedback being welcomed. Should you have suggestions for content development, please email us at [email protected].

Sections

VisitBritain/SolStock/Getty Images

Young female with Downs Syndrome sat at a table laughing

An introduction to this accessible and inclusive tourism toolkit

Aimed at micro, small and medium-sized tourism businesses wanting to embark on, or continue, their accessibility journey and reach the £14.6bn accessible tourism market.

VisitBritain/Pawel Libera

A man sat on a bench outside with his assistance dog

Section 1: What is accessibility?

Accessibility involves removing barriers to provide positive experiences for all. In the case of this toolkit, it’s about ensuring that everyone can enjoy tourism.

Clem Stevens

A man in a mobility scooter leans over to look at two birds by him on the ground. WWT Slimbridge Wetland Centre- Bronze award winner for for the Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Award at the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2023.

Section 2: The benefits of providing an inclusive experience

The spending power of disabled people and their households is called the Purple Pound. The annual tourism Purple Pound in England alone is worth £14.6 billion.

VisitBritain/Nemorin

Group of friends, one wheelchair user, sat around a table

Section 3: Know your customer

Focus on understanding how you can remove barriers to provide an accessible experience for your customer, rather than their medical condition(s).

VisitBritain/Getty Images

Family buying entry tickets from a museum reception

Section 4: An inclusive welcome

The key to providing an inclusive welcome is communicating inclusively with your customers and colleagues.

Noah's Ark Zoo Farm

A person inside a ticket booth smiles at someone standing outside. A blue hearing loop sign is prominently displayed. Noahs Ark Zoo Farm - Gold award winner for the Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Award at the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2023.

Section 5: Accessible features and facilities

The built environment presents accessibility challenges for many customers with accessibility requirements, and we all have a responsibility to be aware of and remove these, where possible.

VisitBritain/Peter Kindersley

Man and woman sitting on grass with crutches beside them, Whitby Abbey in the background

Section 6: Marketing your accessibility

Having an accessible website and social media presence is key to marketing your business inclusively. Digital accessibility hints and tips are provided in this section.

VisitBritain/Solstock/Getty

A person with Downs Syndrome serving customers in the cafe

Section 7: Inclusive recruitment and employment

Your staff members and volunteers should be able to have the same positive, accessible experience that is available to your customers; it’s important to ‘practise what you preach’.

VisitBritain/Eureka!

Young blonde boy with Downs Syndrome looking through a book

Section 8: Continuing your accessibility journey

Thank you for reading this Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses. Wherever you are and however much time, space and resources are available to you, there are many quick wins and longer-term actions you can take to ensure that both your customers and colleagues with accessibility requirements are able to experience inclusive online spaces, built environments and social operations as part of their visit to, or work day at, your business.

VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit For Businesses

Download a text-only Word version of the Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (181.79 KB)

Downloadable documents

As part of this toolkit, there are downloadable business-specific actionable checklists for you to use to plan and prioritise improvements, as well as some more aspirational technical design guidance for when built environment amendments or installations are possible.

Top 20 tips

These top 20 tips can help you to prioritise changes within your business. Download digital versions below.

PDF

Top 20 Tips for Self Catering Venues.pdf

Top 20 tips for self catering venues, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (232.32 KB)
PDF

Top 20 Tips for Hotels.pdf

Top 20 tips for hotels, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (293.28 KB)
PDF

Top 20 Tips for Visitor Attractions.pdf

Top 20 tips for visitor attractions, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (178.7 KB)
PDF

Top 20 Tips for Food & Beverage Businesses.pdf

Top 20 tips for food & beverage businesses, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (192.24 KB)
  • Top_20_Tips_Self_Catering_Businesses.docx

    A Word version of the Top 20 Tips for Self Catering.

    Download (26.79 KB)

    Top_20_Tips_Hotels.docx

    A Word version of the Top 20 Tips for Hotels.

    Download (26.29 KB)

    Top_20_Tips_Visitor_Attractions.docx

    A Word version of the Top 20 Tips for Visitor Attractions.

    Download (22.73 KB)

    Top_20_Tips_Food_and_Beverage_Businesses.docx

    A Word version of the Top 20 Tips for Food & Beverage Businesses.

    Download (25.7 KB)

Action checklists

These practical action checklists are designed to help you understand the practical changes you can make and include ‘quick wins’. 

PDF

Self Catering Action Checklist.pdf

Practical action checklist for self-catering venues, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (803.61 KB)
PDF

Serviced Accommodation Action Checklist.pdf

Practical action checklist for serviced accommodation, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (644.07 KB)
PDF

Visitor Attraction Action Checklist.pdf

Practical action checklist for visitor attractions, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (1.46 MB)
PDF

Food & Beverage Action Checklist.pdf

Practical action checklist for food and beverage businesses, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (653.04 KB)
PDF

Business Events Venues Action Checklist.pdf

Practical action checklist for business events venues, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit

Download (711.54 KB)
PDF

Business Events Organisers Action Checklist.pdf

Practical action checklist for business events organisers, part of VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit

Download (925.38 KB)
  • Self Catering Accommodation Action Checklist_Word version.docx

    A Word version of the self catering accommodation checklist.

    Download (55.7 KB)

    Serviced Accommodation Action Checklist_Word version.docx

    A Word version of the serviced accommodation checklist.

    Download (52.65 KB)

    Visitor Attractions Action Checklist_Word version.docx

    A Word version of the visitor attraction checklist.

    Download (55.67 KB)

    Food & Beverage Action Checklist_Word version.docx

    A Word version of the food & beverage checklist.

    Download (50.84 KB)

    Business Events Venues Action Checklist_Word version.docx

    A Word version of the business event venues checklist.

    Download (51.64 KB)

    Business Events Organisers Action Checklist_Word version.docx

    A Word version of the business events organisers checklist.

    Download (59.21 KB)

Key accessibility feature questionnaires

These questionnaires can help you to identify and promote the key accessibility features at your venue. 

Self-catering accommodation questionnaire.docx

A questionnaire checklist to help self-catering accommodation businesses identify the key accessibility features at their venue.

Download (69.25 KB)

Serviced accommodation questionnaire.docx

A questionnaire checklist to help serviced accommodation businesses identify the key accessibility features at their venue.

Download (75.89 KB)

Camping glamping and holiday park questionnaire.docx

A questionnaire checklist to help camping, glamping and holiday park businesses identify the key accessibility features at their venue.

Download (70.56 KB)

Visitor attractions and experiences questionnaire.docx

A questionnaire checklist to help visitor attractions and experience providers identify the key accessibility features at their venue.

Download (67.1 KB)

Food and drink questionnaire.docx

A questionnaire checklist to help food and drink businesses identify the key accessibility features at their venue.

Download (65.15 KB)

Events festivals and shows questionnaire.docx

A questionnaire checklist to help events, festivals and shows identify the key accessibility features at their venue.

Download (66.93 KB)

Technical guidance for the built environment

This technical guidance for the built environment provides inclusive design principles that should be applied to new-build, refurbishment, conversion, and adaptation projects as far as practicable within any existing site or building constraints.

Technical Guidance for the Built Environment webaccessible.docx

Technical guidance for the built environment for accommodation, visitor attractions, food & beverage businesses and business event venues.

Download (1.41 MB)

Employer resources

Download non-branded PowerPoint slides and accompanying trainer notes, to help you provide basic accessibility awareness training for your staff, and an Accessibility Champion brief. 

VisitEngland Inclusive Tourism Training Slides_webaccessible 2023.pptx

Inclusive tourism training slides and notes.

Download (3.32 MB)
PDF

Accessibility Champion Brief.pdf

A brief for creating an Accessibility Champion role in your business.

Download (114.68 KB)

Accessibility personas

The Accessibility Personas can help you learn about the different impairment groups, based on individuals who have accessibility requirements and their real-life tourism experiences. Download a digital version below.

PDF

Accessibility Personas.pdf

Accessibility personas based on people with lived experience of accessibility.

Download (2.31 MB)
  • Accessibility_Personas_Word_Version.docx

    A Word version of the Accessibility personas.

    Download (24.39 KB)

Statistic data sources

The following document provides the sources of statistics and data referenced within the toolkit. 

Statistic data sources.docx

References for statistics and data used throughout VisitEngland's Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses.

Download (22.81 KB)

Promote the toolkit

This downloadable Communication Toolkit can help you to promote the Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit to your network, with sample social media posts and enewsletter stories.

Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Toolkit for Businesses_Communication Toolkit.pptx

Download the key messages, sample social posts and enewsletter stories to promote the toolkit to your network.

Download (7.59 MB)