Over Learning Disability week FANE will be promoting the launch of the NEAR Awards. FANE are now awarding venues with a good accessibility rating to champion access across our region. The 2017 North East Accessibility Rating (NEAR) Award winners will be announced in March 2017. Friends Action North East’s Community Map is a pan disability online resource for people to find out about the accessibility of venues in the North East. Our Community Map allows people to find out information about the region’s venues and rate and review venues for their accessibility.
Across the North East we have over four thousand venues with detailed accessibility information listed on our community map. Venues on our access map have been reviewed and rated by the public.
We are now awarding venues with a good accessibility rating to champion access across our region. The 2017 North East Accessibility Rating (NEAR) Award winners will be announced in March 2017.
We are contacting venues listed on our Pan-Disability community map www.friendsaction.co.uk and want to promote their venues. Our ‘Rate Us’ badges help people identify venues who cares about access.
What venues need to do?
The ‘Rate Us’ badge in windows or doors will encourage the people who use venues to rate venues on our pan disability community map. The venues with the best review will be short listed for our annual North East Access Rating (NEAR) award.
Why is access important to businesses?
* It is a market you can't ignore that consists of £212 billion in the UK alone.
* 75% of disabled people had 'walked away' from making a purchase, unable or unwilling to do so’
* A third of people in the UK are disabled or close to someone who is. 10 million disabled people live in the UK with a combined annual spending power in excess of £212 billion.
‘The Walk Away’
In 2006, Business Disability Forum and the Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation (now Disability Rights UK) undertook a survey into the opinions and shopping habits of disabled customers. What emerged was a picture of informed consumers who will reward good customer service and punish providers who don’t make any effort to meet their needs. 75% of disabled people had 'walked away' from making a purchase, unable or unwilling to do so. The most important factor was inaccessible premises. Other important factors that discouraged disabled consumers from spending were poorly designed products and staff that were not disability confident, rude or appeared prejudiced. Poor or inappropriate communications was another area that affected spending. Inaccessible websites, telephone systems and printed information were all cited by respondents as reasons they did not make a purchase. Over a third of disabled people said that good disability service was the primary reason for choosing a provider or product. Two thirds chose businesses where they have received good customer service related to their disability. Companies that tell disabled people about the accessibility of their products attracted those consumers.
- See more at: http://www.businessdisabilityforum.org.uk/customer-experience/the-eviden...
How people rate you venue on the Friends Action North East Community Map?
Most people use our website to find where your venue is and to find out more information about your venue including reading other customers/users ratings and reviews. The public rate your venue in 3 key areas they are:
Accessibility:
Service:
Experience:
Want to find out more?
Please contact: keelie@friendsaction.co.uk