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Testimonials from Disabled People, Disability Advocates and Disability Organisations

DisabledGo receives very many letters, emails and telephone calls of support. The samples below are the tip of the iceberg of the much valued encouragement we receive.

Public Figures

Lord Morris of Manchester, the First Minister for Disabled People: DisabledGo gives disabled people and their families more and more access to the social life of their localities. In a word the project will enable disabled people to a part of instead of having to be apart from society and thus enrich their lives. What you have achieved is of high and enduring importance in making life better for disabled people.
Professor Stephen Hawking - Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, University of Cambridge: I am absolutely certain that the comprehensive information provided will prove invaluable to both disabled people and their carers.
Peter Bottomley, former Minister of State, Member of Parliament: I want to declare my strong support for the project, making available easily the information on access. Mobility is more than just transport. People need confidence that they can cope on arrival. In previous ministerial work and through my involvement with charities, I have known the importance of knowledge about access. I commend your important activities to those who can fund it.
Andrew George MP, Liberal Democrat Disabilities Spokesman: The web site will meet a real and genuine need. People with disabilities and their carers will be able to have access to information that will enable them to make informed choices in their own time and on their own terms. I wish the project success.
Ruth Scott, Campaigns Manager, Scope: Scope welcomes this initiative and we hope that as well as providing a valuable resource for disabled people it will also help service providers recognise that it's good business sense to meet the needs of disabled customers.
Nicola Kenny, Transport & Escort Manager, British Red Cross: It never ceases to amaze me the difficulties disabled people encounter in finding out the smallest bit of information. As a result this only serves to increase the frustration that they so often feel. DisabledGo will empower disabled people to make informed choices, completely independently and anonymously, thus enabling them to be less reliant on others... enjoying equal access to social and other facilities.
Helen Allen, Access Consultant, JMU Access Partnership: We hope that you will gain support for this scheme across the whole of the UK to create a network of information and encourage service providers to understand the value and their obligations of improving access to their facilities.
Katy Fuller, Programme Development Manager, Paddington Arts: I believe this valuable resource will help to open up a wider range of amenities to people with disabilities, while raising awareness of access issues to service providers.

Pan-Disability Groups

Kieran McMahon, Director, Disability Stockport: Disability Stockport members and Trustees are delighted with the success of the Stockport Guide... It has also helped promote a positive relationship between the Council and the Voluntary Sector. We were able to tell them they had got it right and we were willing to say so... DisabledGo are a genuine pleasure to work with and they deliver what they say they will.
Sue Conway, Co-ordinator, Disability Information & Advice Centre (York): I have found the DisabledGo Web Site both user friendly and very efficient... During the Spring and Summer DIAC gets lots of enquiries about hotels and attractions available in York. So I am sure, as visitor numbers swell we will be using DisabledGo more and more.
Marc Moss, Director, Kingston Centre for Independent Living: We were very much impressed by the layout, ease of use and degree of clear detail, as well as the comprehensive scope of the database. KCIL encourages the independence and empowerment of disabled through independent living. Your site offers individuals real choice and control over their lives.
Ken Walker, Deputy Chief Executive, Multiple Sclerosis Society: The MS Society is very supportive of this initiative and we believe that the availability of this information will be an exceptionally useful for people affected by MS. We have been monitoring the Croydon pilot and are very enthusiastic about the plans to extend the site to more cities.
Creighton Smith Vice Chair, Newport Access Group: Our Group encourages the independence and empowerment of disabled people and recognise your website offers individuals real choice and control over their lives. Please be assured that you have Newport Disability Access Group's full and eager support.
Sue Coleman, The Association of People with Physical Disabilities: I think it is a remarkable project... It is difficult to overestimate the difference that detailed access information can make in terms of delivering independence to disabled people.
Holly Hart, Advice and Information Support Worker, Richmond AID: I've spoken to a mixture of both able bodied and disabled staff members and have received nothing but praise for the site. They all feel that it is easy to use (none of them had used it before - some had never been on the internet before) and within a few minutes could use it effectively. The symbols were highly rated and the separate categories helped them to find exactly what they were looking for... I apologise for the lack of constructive criticism.
Valerie Richards, Coordinator, Brighton and Hove Federation of Disabled People: There is a lot of isolation caused through the lack of information around... the Federation had a leaflet for two years outlining [access] information, but due to heavy work pressures we did not have the time to commit to the cause. I am pleased you are undertaking this work, as there is such a need in this area.
Raymond Harland, The Lothian Coalition of Disabled People: It is refreshing that this Organisation is taking the time to consult with disabled people. I am sure this guide will be very useful to disabled people and their families and friends in making sure that inclusion with choices becomes a reality in our communities through the Country for disabled people.

Mobility-Impaired Groups

Maureen Selby - Croydon Multiple Sclerosis Society: The existence of this guide is something I find very exciting, as it will give me back something that has been missing in my life for some time - confidence and freedom of choice.
Martin Woodier, Secretary, Leeds Wheelchair User and Carer Group: Your site offers a first rate service to local disabled people... We thought there were huge advantages to there being one website covering all areas of the country rather than each Council doing their own site. We felt this would give a standardised approach to the information given as well as making it easy for those travelling around the country on business, visiting family or on holiday to access information.
Eoin Redahan, Director of Public Relations, The Stroke Association: Congratulations on an excellent service and we look forward to seeing it develop and spread.

Vision Impaired Groups

Colin Bennet, Executive Committee Member of the National Federation of the Blind: As a person with sight and hearing problems I can recommend DisabledGo as an organisation to consult and co-operate with. This will enable disabled people to find out which businesses and other premises are accessible to them. In turn, the provision of this information to disabled people and the wider community will promote the cause of make ever more premises 'disability-friendly'.
John Keenan, Development Manager, Visualise: This website will be of significant benefit to our clients and their families in Edinburgh and to disabled people all over the country, enabling them to be more independent and 'included'.
Allan Jones, Operations Manager, RNIB, Edinburgh & The Lothians: The website will be of enormous assistance to disabled people living in, or visiting, Edinburgh. The accessibility options for blind and partially sighted users of the website are particularly welcome.
Christine Tester, Co-ordinator, The East Sussex Association for the Blind: I found the project very interesting and will be very useful for clients with a sight loss.

Hearing Impaired Groups

Simon Rogers, Ovingdean Hall School (for deaf and hearing impaired students): DisabledGo will be an asset to our staff here... This website will enable my students to make more informed choices about where to go when out in the city. The information contained on your website will encourage them to try new places and consequently gain confidence from their new experiences.

Some of the students have prior knowledge of the site because they are from the Croydon area. When I asked them what they thought of it they said it was, 'alright'. This is the highest praise, it will mean that other students will think it is 'cool' and for teenagers to be 'cool' is everything.
Jackie Erskine, Training and Development Manager, Deaf Society: The Deaf Society welcomes this initiative. One of our challenges is to improve access to services for deaf, deafened, deafblind and hard of hearing people. It was therefore very encouraging to see a service that puts this sort of information at people's fingertips.

Senior Citizens Groups

J.W. Stevens, Chairman, Arthritis Care, Wandsworth Branch: We would like to wish you every success with your enterprise, something long overdue.
Monica Harwell, Director, Contact the Elderly: Recognising that older people, people with young children and other groups, whilst not necessarily labelled 'disabled', do encounter real difficulty in navigating terrain which seems unproblematic to people with full mobility and sensory deprivations, is particularly radical and most welcome!
Aslam Rabbani, Director, Apna Aashyana: We were greatly impressed by the extent of the information available with easy to understand symbols, which could be very useful for the disabled as well as the elderly. We fully endorse this project.

Carers Groups

Michael Wilde, Chief Executive, Cardiff & the Vale Crossroads Scheme: We are convinced that this is an invaluable resource which will enable many people to gain access to a much wider range of amenities. There has been a huge information gap for many disabled people and their Carers in regard to leisure, social and commercial facilities that some others take for granted. We also believe that the prior knowledge, that accessing this site will provide, will alleviate much of the distress that is caused to many people who are physically unable to gain access to some of the amenities.
Caroline A Walden, Office Manager, Voluntary Emergency Service Transport: As a transport provider for individuals with restricted mobility we are frequently asked about the accessibility and facilities of destinations chosen. DisabledGo will not only make my life easier from an administration point of view, I'll simply hand them the website address, but it will also make a real difference to all those connected with our service who need to have essential information at their fingertips.
Gurmail Brard, Director, Croydon Carers Contact: We found the information within the DisabledGo website to be very useful for disabled people and we fully support this venture.
Ruth Grigg, Fundraising and public relations officer, The British Home & Hospital for Incurables: I think the DisabledGo website will help us to plan our trips and be more adventurous in our use of the facilities Croydon has to offer. Our residents are severely disabled and we need detailed information about access before we attempt an outing.
Bethan Lnye, Assistant Manager, Crossroads: Caring for Carers: Brighton Crossroads works with carers of ill or disabled adults and children. The website will make it much easier for carer and cared for to plan activities together, and will also be a valuable resource for our staff, who often take out a disabled person while their carer has a break.
Rhoda Matthews, Community Development Worker, Portslade Community Project: I think the project is invaluable to its users, carers and members of the community who are concerned to ensure that everyone has equal access and opportunity to participate in the life of the community. The work of the Portslade Community Project is centred on community action and involvement, and this innovative website will certainly help us in our work.
May Longhurst, Bluebird Society for the Disabled: I will do all I can in promoting DisabledGo in the area, it is such a great scheme.
Neil McArthur, Branch and Development Manager, Alzheimer's Society: I am pleased to lend my support to this innovative project which I feel will make a great deal of difference to many peoples lives. Some people with dementia do experience problems with mobility and wheelchair access to restaurants and other places of interests can be a problem to carers if they are striving to maintain as full a life as possible for their dependants.