FOOTBALL CLUBS BID TO IMPROVE ACCESS AT STADIUMS 1
Days Out

Football Clubs bid to Improve Access at Stadiums

The team at Quingo like to encourage scooter users to get out and about and visit interesting or unusual places on their Quingo mobility scooter, this includes going to support your favourite team at some of the nation’s biggest and best football stadiums.

FOOTBALL CLUBS BID TO IMPROVE ACCESS AT STADIUMS 2

Stadium Access

There have been calls for years for football clubs to improve access to stadiums and smaller grounds, so that fans with limited mobility can join in the fun support their favourite team home and away.

After an investigation in 2014 by the BBC, it was found that 17 of the teams in the England’s top flight failed to provide enough disabled seating (seating for mobility scooters and wheelchairs). A year further on and only 5 clubs offer the required number of accessible seats. This means that 15 of the 20 clubs in the Premier League will have to increase capacity to comply with new guidelines on accessibility. This is great news for Quingo Scooter users who like to attend the football.

New proposals agreed

Recently a government report criticised the lack of facilities for people with limited mobility. The Premier League issued a statement saying: “We are undertaking our own assessment by surveying every Premier League stadium to determine improvements for disabled access.

“Disability access was discussed at the Premier League shareholders meeting last week with several new proposals agreed.”

The Quingo team are pleased to see that the Premier League is reviewing accessibility in top flight stadiums. Hopefully, this is the start of greater accessibility for all sporting venues across the country.

FOOTBALL CLUBS BID TO IMPROVE ACCESS AT STADIUMS 3

Attendance for people with limited mobility

The government report, made in conjunction with the Department of Work and Pensions and Department for Culture, Media and Sport recommends:

  • Planning attendance: Clubs should provide attendance for all groups of disabled people. They should provide information such as stadium distance from local parking and gradient of pavements.
  • Buying a ticket: Clubs should allow disabled spectators to buy tickets online. They should provide accessible seating that allows disabled spectators and supporters with limited mobility to sit with family and friends.
  • Travelling: Clubs should provide up to date transport information.
  • Match Day: Match day and club stewards should be given disability awareness training.
  • Aids and adaptations: Clubs should increase the number of wheelchair user places for stadiums with more than 10,000 seats.

Quingo users should keep up to date with the Quingo Scooter Users blog as we’ll be writing about the best grounds to visit on your Quingo on the future.

Have you been to a stadium on your Quingo?

If you have been to the football, rugby, cricket, athletics or any other sporting event, we’d like to hear from you and share your experience and any photos you might have on our blog. Simply fill in the contact form on our website with your story and we can share your experience with other Quingo users.