Are you open for business .... for everyone?
Businesses have a moral obligation but also a legal duty to anticipate – and give due consideration to - the needs of all people and understand the challenges of access that many disabled and less able people face when using our services.
An inclusive and accessible business is one that is equally open to all potential customers, including the approximately 400,000 / 24% of people in Northern Ireland who have a disability. This is not a niche market - providing better access means that your business is more welcoming to everyone.
Enabling customers with disabilities, carers and people of all ages to access your services will widen your customer base. The market for inclusive and accessible tourism is growing as can be seen by the value of the purple pound (the spending power of disabled households.) It is estimated that by 2025 more than a third of the UK’s population will be over 55 years old (Source: VisitBritain). Today’s elderly visitors are more active and better off than previous generations; there is a correlation between age and disability. Be prepared for the future.
MEA Tourism Support
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council is committed to helping businesses promote accessibility and inclusion. Building on the success of the MEA Embracing Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Programme, the Council has worked with AccessAble to promote detailed accessibility assessments for local businesses. These initial assessments are now available to view online HERE and Council hopes to work with more businesses to expand this information in the future.
Tourism NI Support
Tourism NI has recently launched a new Inclusive & Accessible Tourism Toolkit, which you can view and download HERE. It provides ‘quick win’ practical hints and tips, as well as longer term aspirational goals, relating to physical and digital design, and business operations.
To complement the launch in April 2025, they also ran a useful industry workshop, with knowledgeable and experienced speakers. You can find all the presentations from the day online HERE.
For a full range of support and advice in relation to Inclusive and Accessible Tourism visit tourismni.com/accessibility
Access to Tourism NI's Inclusive & Accessible Tourism Training Modules is also available on their dedicated E-Learning Platform MyTourismNI
A series of Inclusive Tourism Training modules can also be viewed here: Inclusive Tourism Training Videos
You can also check out useful webinars focusing on embracing the Disability Discrimination Act for: holiday accommodation and visitor attractions and experiences. Plus specific guidance is available in relation to:
Equality NI
Equality NI gives guidance to employers and service providers about their obligations under the law and good practice. They have published 3 steps to success with 'Every Customer Counts': Policy; Audit and Action. They also have a great range of practical guidance documents and case studies to promote accessible service plus useful links.
Guidance from other tourism bodies
Visit Britain provides extensive business advice on how to make your business accessible and inclusive. They have also developed an extensive set of guides to enhance their support for travellers with a range of accessibility requirements, both when considering a trip within Britain and when already on our shores. The guides showcase useful links and practical information alongside inspirational experiences and attractions which cater to those with accessibility needs. There is a specific regional guide for Northern Ireland. Updates on their accessibility information initiatives can be found HERE.
Additional Guidance
Check out Tourism for All - the voice of accessible tourism and travel in the UK's - top tips and checklists for businesses.
Free publicity opportunities
Euan's Guide
"The aim of Euan's Guide is to empower disabled people by providing information that will give confidence and choices for getting out and about.“ List your venue on Euan's Guide and browse their tips and resources.
My Way Access
The My Way Access review is built by disabled people, for disabled people. You can see reviews before travelling and leave reviews too.
Initiatives undertaken by Mid and East Antrim Borough Council
'Putting People First', Mid and East Antrim’s first Community Plan was published on 31 March 2017, since then, work has got underway to deliver on the actions and outcomes identified.
The Council's draft Disability Action Plan (2023 - 2027) is a statement of our commitment to the promotion of equality of opportunity for disabled people.
Dementia Friendly
Responding to our ageing population is a strategic priority within the Plan and therefore working towards making our borough Dementia Friendly is a key priority.
Pre-visit accessibility guides are a great help for disabled people, and if relevant their carers, to plan for a rewarding day trip or as part of a longer break. Two guides have been produced through a recent dementia friendly heritage project led by Council and funded through the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The guides are for The Heritage Hub at Carnlough Town Hall and Whitehead Railway Museum. You can find some background on the project and a link to both guides here.
Autism Friendly
Autism NI awarded Mid and East Antrim Borough Council the prestigious ‘Autism Impact Award’ in recognition of Council venues going ‘above and beyond’ to create accessible and ‘autism-friendly’ environments i.e. Carrickfergus Amphitheatre; Larne Leisure Centre; Seven Towers Leisure Centre; Carnfunnock Country Park, The Gobbins and The People’s Park. Pre-visit guides and how to become an autism friendly business can be found here.
The Council has also produced an Autism Employability Guide to support the inclusion of autistic individuals in the workplace. This guide equips employers with the skills, knowledge, and practical tools needed to better understand the needs of autistic people and to support them in securing and sustaining meaningful employment within their organisations.
