Disabled Movie Lovers Demand Action From Cinema CEOs On Second Class Service

I have just recieved this press release from the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign.

A group of young disabled people will meet face to face with the heads of the UK’s leading cinema chains at Westminster today to demand action to end the “second-class service” that disabled people face at many venues.

After presenting a petition* with more than 1000 signatures to number 10 Downing Street, the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign Trailblazers, a group of 400 disabled campaigners aged 16 – 30 who tackle social injustices faced by young disabled people, will address cinema industry leaders on issues raised during an investigation of the UK cinema industry. The heads of Odeon, Vue and Cineworld will be grilled by MPs on their commitment to overcoming major inconsistencies in the experiences of disabled customers at their venues, at the meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Young Disabled people.

Earlier this year, more than 100 members of the group undertook undercover investigations at 125 venues across the UK to examine the issues faced by disabled customers, and have produced a documentary, Lights, Camera, Access, on the problems they encountered. Their campaign was sparked after young disabled people told of struggling to enjoy a trip to see a film with friends and family – even at cinemas just a few years old and has been backed by film industry figures including Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Miranda Richardson and Sigourney Weaver.

The investigation found:

• Poor or very poor views of the screen from wheelchair-accessible seating at one in three of the major cinema venues
• Over half of the major chain cinemas have uncomfortable accessible seating areas, causing discomfort or even pain while viewing
• Staff with poor or very poor disability awareness at a third of the major chain cinemas, often leading to rude or embarrassing treatment of disabled customers
• Nearly half of all the cinemas in the study did not offer an online ticket service for disabled customers.

At the meeting, members of Trailblazers will call on a panel including Odeon COO Roger Harris, Vue CEO Steve Knibbs and Cineworld Vice President of Operations Matt Eyre to commit to tackling cinema accessibility problems, and to work with disability groups and architects towards solutions. They will be shown a screening of the Lights, Camera, Access documentary, which outlines the problems disabled movie-goers face and ways to address them, and includes interviews with the Safety Council and a leading architectural firm. The documentary is currently being screened at film festivals throughout the UK.

Trailblazer Tanvi Vyas (28) from Edgware, who led the project said:

“Disabled people have a legal right to access cinema facilities, but further to this, we have a right as consumers to go to the cinema with confidence and receive a consistent service for our money.

“When you have had to wait for weeks to see a new release at your local venue as it isn’t being shown on an accessible screen, you are unable to book your seat online, you have to turn up on the day with your fingers crossed that the disabled spaces will be available, you are unable to sit with your friends and you have an uncomfortable view of the screen, it is hard to accept that you are getting the same service for the ticket price as everyone else.”

Bobby Ancil, Trailblazers Project Manager said:

“This is an opportunity for cinema-industry leaders to listen and learn about what their disabled customers need in order to enjoy their experience at the cinema. With 12 per cent of the cinema-going audience having a disability, this is simply not a group of consumers that they can afford to ignore.

“Today we want to see a commitment from each cinema to address the issues we have uncovered. We need to see an attitudinal shift away from ticking the box on disabled access and towards working with Trailblazers and other disability groups to find real solutions for their customers.”