Hebden Bridge Disability Access Forum (HBDAF) has recently issued wheelchair ramps to four shops in Hebden Bridge via a grant from Community Foundation for Calderdale.
Just Books, Dragonfly Clothing Boutique, Rohan Outdoor and Age UK charity shop were all delighted to receive these. An HBDAF member and wheelchair user, who tested the ramps in a powerchair, was thrilled to be able to access a bookshop for the first time for 26 years and immediately bought two books!
Stickers on the shop window indicate they have a portable ramp, and shopkeepers quickly respond to a knock on the window to attract their attention.
Portable ramps enable wheelchair users, and those unable to manage steps, to access shops, and are an easy and cost effective way of tackling the limitations of being in a wheelchair.
Enabling access to shops, cafes and other businesses makes sound economic sense, as the spending power of disabled people in the UK (‘the purple pound’) is £249 Billion per year according to the DWP!
There are already many premises in Hebden Bridge without steps which are accessible.
HBDAF plans to provide further portable ramps in Hebden Bridge, helping our lovely town to become an even more ‘disabled friendly’ place to live in and visit.