Disabled people are speaking out about Travelodge’s accessible room policy

A petition for better accessibility at Travelodge hotels has gained 54,000 signatures after a couple were given single beds.

For many couples, a hotel stay offers a chance to sit back and relax, a temporary getaway from the stress of everyday life. This was not the case for 25-year-old Alice Bigsby-bye and their partner Beau Brannick, 26, during their stay at a Travelodge in Manchester earlier this month.

Bigsby-bye, who is from Norwich, is a wheelchair user. As a result, when booking their trip, the couple requested to stay in an accessible double room. Upon arrival, they said it became clear that their needs had not been met.

Despite requesting a double room, Bigsby-bye and Brannick said they were informed by staff that all accessible Travelodge rooms across the country are only fitted with single beds.

“At first, we thought it was because we both had quite feminine names,” Bigsby-bye told The Big Issue, assuming a booking error had been made listing the pair as friends rather than as a couple.

“When my partner went to try and amend the issue, they were informed that all of the accessible rooms had single beds. According to the receptionist, the reason for this was supposedly because all disabled people travel with their careers, so don’t need a double bed.”

In a statement, Travelodge told The Big Issue that its accessible rooms can accommodate double beds, as well as single beds.

Full article here https://www.bigissue.com/news/...

For travelers with disabilities, video games are windows to the world

Advanced technologies create outdoor environments so vivid that players can reap real-life health benefits at home.

Valerie Johnson is an avid traveler who loves the outdoors. Next on her list is a trip to Walden Pond, in Massachusetts. But the 27-year-old Texanwon’t need a plane ticket; all she’ll need is a video game.

Johnson was recently diagnosed with idiopathic intracranial hypertension, a neurological disorder that can cause headaches, impaired vision, and joint pain. These symptoms make travel—particularly to the outdoors—daunting. “I worry that I will get lost on a trail, or that I’ll have difficulty getting back to my vehicle,” she says. “So while camping and hiking would be fun, I’m hesitant to venture out.”

Luckily, Johnson has found a hack through video games, and she isn’t the only one. At a time when visitation to national parks and other outdoor sites is booming, video games have become an unlikely assistive tool, a new pathway into nature tourism for millions of Americans with a disability or chronic illness.

Full article here https://www.nationalgeographic...

Disability by Design

Deaf and Disabled People in TV (DDPTV) have collaborated with Bectu Unscripted to create ‘Disability by Design: Representation in TV’ – a campaign that promotes increased representation of deaf and disabled TV professionals, both on and off screen, in the UK.

The key aim of the campaign is to amplify the voices of deaf and disabled professionals, showcase the breadth of disabled talent in the UK TV industry, and educate both employers and employees on legal obligations and best and worst practice.

Earlier this year, we created a comprehensive survey for the deaf and disabled TV workforce, both on and off screen. The results of the survey were then analysed by specialist researchers at Bournemouth University, who then created a report which focused on the key findings from the quantitative data. Read the full report here.

Our findings revealed shocking realities of working in the film and TV industry as a deaf and disabled person. The stories told by our respondents demonstrated the need for immediate yet long lasting change in the industry and the importance of spreading awareness for such an endemic issue.

This week, as part of our campaign, we will be sharing the testimonials from our survey respondents on our social media platforms and this webpage. It is vital that we share the stories and real-life experiences of deaf and disabled workers, both positive and negative, to generate real change in the industry. *It is important to note that some of the testimonials include stories and information that may be triggering*.

We believe that urgent action is needed from broadcasters, indies and stakeholders to tackle the alarming levels of under-representation of deaf and disabled professionals in the UK’s TV workforce. Diversity is the lifeblood of our industry, and we aim to demonstrate why disabled talent is so fantastic and what we collectively bring to the table.

Full article here https://bectu.org.uk/news/disa...

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