Trade urged to become more deaf aware
Travel agents and tour operators are being urged to make themselves accessible to the 9 million people in the UK who are deaf or hard of hearing.
During this week’s Deaf Awareness Week, charity RNID is urging the trade to seize the opportunity to expand their customer base.
It said a survey of its annual membership survey found 71% of respondents said they’d be encouraged to use a specific shop or service if the staff are deaf aware.
Another 41% of respondents said they’d go out of their way to use a shop or service if they knew an induction loop, which amplifies speech over background noise for hearing aid users, was available.
RNID chief executive Jackie Ballard said: “Businesses within the travel sector can make very simple changes to significantly improve the experience of customers who are deaf or hard of hearing and encourage return visits in the future.
“We want travel agents and tour operators throughout the UK to ensure staff receive deaf awareness training, provide fully operational induction loops and remove unnecessary barriers, such as screens, which can affect communication and deter people with a hearing loss from booking travel with them.â€
*Is your shop accessible to the hard of hearing? Are there simple changes you could make? Email us your views by clicking on ADD A COMMENT below.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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