Hoxton Hotel brings disability facilities to life online

The Pictorial Access Description (PAD) is a new feature offered by Blue Badge Style - a recently launched app and website guide for the less-physically-able.

“Our hotel was designed with inclusion in mind, so we definitely want to be able to show potential clients how easy it is to stay at the Hoxton,” said The Hoxton’s general manager Timothy Griffin.

“Blue Badge Style’s offering means we can offer peace of mind to people with mobility issues. They can see how the hotel looks before they arrive and understand how accessible we are, as well as work out any potential problems.

Social media-ready​

“This isn’t just about access compliance, but demonstrating our cool, comfortable facilities, easily on our website.”

The Blue Badge Style PAD arrives as a social media-ready tool matching the style of the venue, and it can be posted to a website, Facebook or Pinterest account. The PAD will appear on a business’s website as a button and once clicked, takes the customer visually through the access points before their visit. It includes overlay photos and narrative of facilities and is placed on an easy to find area of a website.

Founder of Blue Badge Style, Fiona Jarvis, said: “Hotels and restaurants have often made significant investments in creating a stylish and accessible place for disabled people, but too often the information is hidden, not available on the website, or in one case, hidden beneath a paragraph about the hotel accepting dogs.

Informed choice​

“People with mobility issues will check out a hotel, restaurant or bar online before they go, but it’s often very difficult to work out what the obstacles are for your particular type of disability. For example a walking stick user will want to know if there’s a handrail on the stairs, whilst a wheelchair user needs to know how easy is it to get up a ramp.

“It’s all about knowing what to expect. Blue Badge Style’s pictorial descriptions will be as cool as the venue’s website, allowing potential customers to make an informed choice before going out and having a good time.”

Last year VisitEngland joined forces with disability organisation DisabledGo to design a course to help hospitality and tourism businesses provide the right service for disabled guests and visitors. That course can be accessed here.