by Shane Henson — April 10, 2013—U.K. businesses that have accessible facilities can now get the word out to disabled individuals and those with long-standing health problems who either live in or are traveling to the United Kingdom through the new Web site Open Britain, which launched this month at the House of Lords as part of British Tourism Week. Visitors to the site can now access more than 8,000 businesses committed to accessibility.
The service, whose founding sponsors include Clos-o-Mat, Omni Serv and AVH, will also provide listings of mobility equipment suppliers. This means it will be equally useful to operators seeking to make their facilities and services more accessible, the organization says.
Championed by the charity Tourism for All U.K., Open Britain is set to become the leading Web site for disabled visitors into and within in the U.K., say the organization’s management team. According to Tourism for All U.K., it was developed in direct response to feedback from last year’s Paralympic Games when a large number of Britain’s disabled visitors said that they found it difficult to piece together all the information they need.
Over one-quarter of the U.K. population have a long-standing health problem or disability, making the demand for accurate information about accessible services and facilities a national imperative. Conservative estimates value the disabled travel market in excess of £2 billion and the biggest single barrier for travelers is piecing together all the information so they can manage, notes Tourism for All U.K..
Each business listed on OpenBritain is given its own log-in to the system—Guestlink—to allow them to directly update their information with pictures, description, availability and pricing and other information at their convenience.
