Pubs still not doing enough for disabled, says charity

Pubs and bars are beating other food and drink venues for ensuring ease of use for disabled customers. But disability charity Scope says more than...

Pubs and bars are beating other food and drink venues for ensuring ease of use for disabled customers. But disability charity Scope says more than half of pubs are still not providing easy-to-use facilities for the disabled.

The claims follow Scope's Big Night Out in October - carried out as part of its Free2pee campaign - which saw 1,000 volunteers visit 1,300 leisure venues across the UK to see how accessible they were. A total of 686 of the venues were pubs. Forty-six per cent of bars were found to have level access, with either no steps or steep ramps to impede their way, but only 35 per cent of pubs and bars had accessible toilets.

More worrying is the fact that fewer than half of these toilets were actually useable. Camp-aigners found that toilets in many leisure venues were being used for storage while others were locked, blocked by furniture or so poorly designed that they were actually dangerous to use.

However, pubs were highlighted as being the most creative in adapting venues and many pubs took immediate action once shortcomings were pointed out.

One pub put a portaloo in its car park, for example, and a bar in Soho heeded the complaints of one campaigner and a week later had put in a temporary ramp.

Scope said that there were some encouraging examples of good practice with 84 per cent of staff being helpful and friendly. The group said that this was very positive, as staff attitudes made a huge difference to disabled people's experience of going out.

Scope argued that the legislation needed to be "simple and unambiguous" so that people's legal duties were clearly understandable.

It said some licensees are still confused by what is a "reasonable adjustment" and the government needed to make clear what licensees' responsibilities were.

Under the terms of the Disability Discrimination Act, which became law on October 1, all service providers need to make "reasonable adjustments" to meet the needs of disabled people.

Venue types offering full accessibility