Wheelchair users forced to abandon UK summer holiday plans, says Muscular Dystrophy UK

Read article : Wheelchair users forced to abandon UK summer holiday plans, says Muscular Dystrophy UK

These are the shocking findings of a new investigation by Trailblazers, a network of young disabled people and their supporters which is part of Muscular Dystrophy UK and which surveyed over 100 people between 17 July and 14 August 2017.

The main findings of the survey found that:

• 8 in 10 (almost 80%) of young disabled people have been unable to go on holiday in the past five years because of the lack of hoist facilities in hotels.
• Over 35% of those surveyed show that young disabled people don’t go anywhere overnight because of the lack of hoists.
• There are only 18 known hotels in the UK with ceiling hoists available for use free of charge according to one trusted website used by many disabled people.

The investigation found that many disabled users were forced to abandon their summer holiday plans and stay at home. It found that access to hoists in hotels which are a basic requirement for wheelchair users, either ceiling hoists or hoists for hire, is at best scarce and in many cases not available.

Hoists are a basic requirement which allows disabled users to transfer out of their wheelchair into bed or the bathroom when they cannot independently transfer. The complications when organising a holiday to ensure accessibility to hoists means planning can be stressful and lead to anxiety and uncertainty. What should be a pleasant break turns into an insurmountable chore. It is also a big problem for disabled users when having to travel for work, whether that be overnight stays or just a few days.

Moreover this is bad for business for the hotel industry as the collective spending power of disabled people has been estimated at £249bn to the economy.

The Trailblazers investigation also included a mystery shopping exercise (on 9 August, 2017) which found that only one hotel out of 20 was able to offer a free hoist for those who needed it. Other problems included:

• Many hotel staff not knowing what a hoist was used for
• One hotel when asked if they had a hoist for transferring from wheelchair to bed was unsure if they did, but said they had a hoist for use at the swimming pool
• One major hotel chain recommending to wheelchair users to bring their own hoist but admitting their beds were unsuitable for use with a portable hoist

Lucy Watts is a member of Trailblazers from Essex and a wheelchair user since 2008. She has a muscle-wasting condition and can’t safely transfer so has to be hoisted. She said:

“I haven’t stayed away from home since losing the ability to transfer and I’ve been unable to stay overnight purely because of the hoist issue. Hotels having hoists would mean I’d be able to take trips away. I’d be able to attend more conferences – many of which require an overnight stay – which would open up more doors in terms of my voluntary work.

“Having faced multiple issues with hotels, I’ve been put off staying overnight – even if we rented a hoist, I haven’t had the confidence to take the risk of not knowing whether the place will be accessible. However, if I knew every hotel had a fully accessible room with available hoist, I would definitely have the courage to branch out and do overnight trips.

“Disabled people face enough barriers in life. We shouldn’t be prevented from enjoying trips away because hotels won’t always make the effort to be fully accessible and inclusive.”

Nic Bungay, Director of Campaigns, Care and Information at Muscular Dystrophy UK, said:

“These figures are truly disappointing as it means many disabled people are not able to visit some of our most popular destinations. Muscular Dystrophy UK believes there are some immediate steps the tourist industry and government could take to improve provision.

“The tourist industry should provide staff training with disabled people so that their staff know what a hoist is and are aware of their policy regarding helping disabled people get a hoist for their stay. Government could provide increased funding so businesses can access funds to install hoists in hotel rooms. And local authorities could provide financial and planning advice or permission to ensure that access is at the centre of all major renovations and new buildings.

“If these measures were implemented immediately it would greatly increase access to hotels for wheelchair uses wishing to travel.”

Notes to editors

Hoists in hotels – an investigation

Key findings

• 8 in 10 (almost 80%) of respondents have been unable to go on holiday because of the lack of hoist facilities in hotels in the past 5 years.

• Over 85% can use a mobile hoist if necessary.

• According to Ceiling Hoist Users Club[1] which is a well trusted website which many disabled people refer to when looking for somewhere accessible to stay, there are only 18 known hotels in the UK with ceiling hoists available for use free of charge.

Other key statistics

• Almost 15% cannot use a mobile hoist to transfer if a ceiling hoist is unavailable

• Over 35% of survey respondents don’t go anywhere overnight because of the lack of hoists.

• Over 25% of survey respondents only stay in accommodation that supplies hoists (either ceiling or portable).

• Over 35% of survey respondents are forced to take their own portable hoist on holiday with them.

• 9 out of 10 respondents said if a hotel had a complimentary mobile hoist it would incentivise them to stay there.

• Almost 30% of survey respondents would be willing to travel over 50 miles from their chosen destination if the hotel had a hoist.

Hotel Survey

The Trailblazers survey asked respondents to rate their experiences for 7 major hotels chains as well as independent hotels/B and B’s. Some 103 people responded to the survey conducted between 17 July and 14 August 2017

Mystery Shopper

We also conducted a mystery shopper (on 9 August 2017) of a selection of hotels. We asked them if they were able to offer a complementary mobile hoist free of charge to those who needed it. Some of the responses included:

Major UK Cities

We called two major chain hotels, each in London, Manchester, Glasgow and Belfast. The only hotel who were able to offer help to hire a hoist was one of the major chains in Glasgow, but the cost of hiring the hoist would fall to the customer booking the holiday. One other hotel in Glasgow from another major chain had a hoist available free of charge to their customers who needed it. All of the other hotels we called in London, Manchester, Glasgow and Belfast did not have any hoists, nor did they offer help to hire one.

We spoke to a customer service advisor at one of these chains, who was able to give full details of the accessibility of their rooms, including the type of flooring available. Unfortunately, none of their rooms had a level entry wet room and there was no complementary hoist free of charge. However, they were willing to take delivery of the hoist.

Other UK tourist destinations

We called a number of other hotels in various destinations across the UK. This included:

• Oxford

• York

• Brighton

• Newport

• Cardiff

The information we received varied across four different UK chains. None of the five above were able to offer a hoist free of charge, or offer assistance with hiring a hoist. One major chain recommended that we bring our own hoist, but said that their beds were not suitable for use with a portable hoist. Another hotel told us that they had a hoist in the swimming pool, and one member of staff we spoke to did not know what a hoist was.

Summary

From our mystery shopping there is only one hotel out of the 20 that we called able to offer a free hoist for those who need it at the hotel. None of the disabled people who have responded to our survey have said they’ve been given assistance to have a hoist hired at any hotel.

Policy Recommendations

Government

• Building regulations must be amended to reflect the changing needs of disabled people, including the provision of overhead hoists in accessible rooms and the inclusion of Changing Places toilets for functions.

• Independent businesses may not have adequate funding to make these choices. Government should create an ‘access renovation fund’ which independent businesses can access money to install hoists in hotel rooms, or other access requirements such as Changing Places toilets.

Local Authorities

• As the collective spending power of disabled people has been estimated at £249bn to the economy, local authorities must provide assistance, including financial and planning advice or permission to ensure that access is at the centre of all major renovations and new buildings.

Tourism Industry

• Hotels should purchase mobile hoists as an urgent measure, and provide these as a complimentary service to wheelchair users who need them. However, many require overhead hoists and we call on hotels to have their accessible rooms assessed to have these hoists fitted.

• We call on the tourism industry to provide staff training with disabled people so that their staff know what a hoist is, are aware of their policy regarding helping disabled people get a hoist for their stay, and to educate those in charge of hotel development of why having hoists available is so important.

Case Study

Carrie Aimes gave permission for this to be used as a case study.

“I am an infrequent traveller, not because I lack the desire but because it is so difficult to find appropriately adapted and affordable hotels. Even getting away for a single night is an almost impossible challenge, since hotel rooms are, disappointingly, not equipped with ceiling track hoists as standard.

Although some people get around this problem by hiring (at an extra cost) or taking with them a portable hoist, this is not practical for all. Portable hoists are cumbersome, difficult to store, transport and manoeuvre. Furthermore, many people simply don’t have access to a vehicle large enough to carry such large-scale equipment.

I have Ullrich congenital muscular dystrophy and am completely non-ambulant. I can’t safely transfer and so I either have to be hoisted or manually lifted. Understandably most people, excluding family, are reluctant to do the latter. So, if I want or need to get away from home, my only current option is to ask family members if they are willing to lend their time and support (far from ideal).

With so few hotels in the UK equipped with ceiling track hoists, our options are severely limited. For those of us who need this facility, a premium cost is incurred, and then we are restricted to specific locations. Sadly we are not free as others are, to occupy any hotel room in a hotel of our choice, anywhere in the country.”