LIFE'S A BEACH

If you thought having a mobility impairment would prevent you from enjoying a beach holiday, think again. It’s time to get out that knotted hanky, reserve a space for your windbreaker and enjoy the best of British beaches!

With nearly 8,000 miles of coastline, people in the UK are spoilt for choice when it comes to finding a place to relax and enjoy some sun, sea and sand. Whether you want the hustle and bustle of a traditional seaside town like Brighton or Scarborough, or the laidback rural charms of Cornish coastal villages, there’s plenty to choose from. And as the nation’s regional tourist boards wake up to the importance of accessibility for disabled visitors, more and more seaside locations across the country are introducing practical access features, meaning that everyone can make the most of the British summer.

Beach wheelchairs, specialist matting which can be laid across any surface to make it smooth and safe for people with mobility impairments, and permanent boardwalks or jetties leading down to the shore are just some of the methods being used by local authorities and disability organisations to enable access to the beach. Here we profile a few of the accessibility solutions on offer and find out where you can enjoy them.

SUNNY SOUTH-WEST
At the south-western tip of the UK you’ll find some breathtaking coastal landscapes and plenty to see and do. Devon and Cornwall are popular holiday destinations, and this area has some fantastic weather along with great beaches and seaside resorts offering watersports, country trails and nature reserves.

Disability Cornwall owns a number of Landeez all-terrain wheelchairs which it offers for use on local beaches in tourist spots including Falmouth, St Michael’s Mount, Bude and Newquay. These beaches also have other helpful features including promenades and ramps down to the beach, and you can enjoy full access right up to the seafront using the Landeez which, with its large balloon-like pneumatic tyres, rides easily over sand and can even be taken into the sea for a quick paddle if you’re tempted by the crystal clear waters in the area (bear in mind though that the Landeez doesn’t float). Like most beach chairs, the Landeez is attendant pushed so you will need someone with you to get about on the beach if you’re using it.

In nearby Devon, beach wheelchairs are available to borrow at a number of beautiful locations. The local authority in Torbay has opted for JOB (Joy on the Beach) chairs. JOB beach wheelchairs are lightweight, foldable, and have rugged over-size wheels making them a great option for disabled people visiting Preston Sands, Paignton Sands and Goodrington Beach – where you can borrow them free of charge right on the beach (call 01803 207 975 for more information). Joseph Grosso from Neatech, the Italian company which manufactures the chair, explains: “JOB rolls across sand and can be used as a beach lounge chair, pushed into the open water for easy swimming access, and be used to easily lower and lift disabled individuals at the pool.” So whether you fancy a quick dip in the sea or the chance to soak up the sun on a Torbay beach, this user-friendly chair should be just the job!

While you’re in the south-west, it’s worth investigating some of the accessible coastal paths in the area. The South West Coast Path website includes information on which routes are accessible, or you can call the helpful staff there to find out which paths would best suit you – from Baggy Point in Devon to Lulworth in Dorset. The accessible paths are all fairly flat with minimal cross camber, no steps or stiles and they’re all at least 2’6” wide, making them ideal for wheelchair users, people on mobility scooters or those with pushchairs or buggies. With views of breathtaking cliffs, stunning beaches and sweeping horizons, these walks will show you some of the most rugged and naturally beautiful areas of the region while giving you some fresh air and keeping you active.

BRIGHTON AND AROUND
Brighton and the surrounding area is another popular spot for holidaymakers, with shopping, celebrity spotting and fantastic restaurants being on the ‘to do’ list for many visitors. During high season, seafront officers from Brighton and Hove Council roll out special matting across Brighton beach. This is called Mobi-Mat, and provides a smooth surface giving wheelchair users and people who use walking aids easy access over the pebbles. To find out when it’s available, call the seafront office on 01273 292 716.

Hastings Beach is just over 30 miles away and offers the same matting as well as providing Tiralo beach chairs. This lightweight chair can be pushed or pulled by an assistant and is designed for use on the beach and in the water, with specially designed floats enabling those with mobility impairments to enjoy a quick dip in the sea – the floats and reclining position mean the Tiralo acts like a lilo when it goes into the water. A spokesman from Hastings Borough Council explains the benefits: “The great thing about the Tiralo beach chairs is that they allow wheelchair users to have just as much access to our beach as people without a physical disability. The fact they go in the sea as well is a real bonus.” There are two Tiralo chairs at Hastings, which are free to use on the beach, or you can pay £2 for a 30-minute session in the sea with a lifeguard. Staff at the lifeguard hut opposite Pelham Palace will be able to tell you more, or you can call 0845 274 1001 for further information.

The Tiralo chair is very easy to use, as Able journalist Julie Andrews – who used the Tiralo a couple of years ago on a French holiday – can testify: “This amphibious wheelchair gave me so much freedom on both land and water. It was really easy for my family to pull me to the water’s edge. I have been in the sea many times before but if I am honest rarely felt safe enough to venture much further than the frothy seaweed-riddled edges. With the Tiralo, once you’re in the water, by affecting a simple doggy paddle motion with your arms, movement is fairly swift. In fact, the only real problem is not how far you can go, but how far you have to paddle back!”

HEADING NORTH
The waters may not be as temperate as in southern resorts, but the welcome will be just as warm if you head to the seaside ‘oop north’. The Yorkshire coast has plenty to offer, from the picturesque town of Whitby to its more traditional seaside neighbour Scarborough. The Shopmobility scheme in Scarborough has a Landeez all-terrain wheelchair which can be hired for free (refundable deposit of £70 required), allowing you to enjoy the popular beach, and in nearby Whitby, the local Disablement Action Group (DAG) owns three Landeez chairs. These can be rented for three hours for £2.50 (with a refundable deposit of £5). During the summer months, Landeez chairs are available on the beach near the cliff lift and in winter you can collect them from the offices of Whitby DAG. They can be used around the shallow water on the foreshore and on the compacted sand of the main beach.

It’s worth bearing in mind that, like many of the beaches featured within this article, both Scarborough’s North Bay and Whitby’s West Cliff beach boast Blue Flag awards. This shows that the beaches have minimum standards of accessibility, including disabled toilets, accessible parking and access ramps to the beach. Although a Blue Flag won’t guarantee that a resort offers beach wheelchairs and access directly to the sea, it’s definitely worth checking out what’s available at your local Blue Flag beach. Emma Brennan from ENCAMS, who run the Blue Flag award, explains: “Our country’s coast caters for all different tastes and interests and it’s important that however you want to spend your day at the beach, there are things in place to make it as easy and hassle free as possible for disabled people. Anyone visiting a Blue Flag beach can expect to find litter-free sands, clean bathing water and good facilities.

TAKING YOUR REGULAR WHEELCHAIR ONTO A BEACH
It’s fair to say that beaches and wheelchairs don’t mix. Pebbles in your spokes and skinny wheels sinking into the sand make pushing nigh-on impossible if you’re in a standard manual wheelchair, while powered wheelchair users have to be careful about letting the chair’s battery get wet. But that doesn’t mean you can’t take your chair onto a beach.

Bob Ross, Helpline Coordinator at the Disabled Living Foundation, suggests that powered wheelchairs and scooters are a better bet than manual wheelchairs when it comes to getting to the seaside, and recommends all-terrain vehicles like Beamer’s Tramper scooter or Permobil’s Trax power chair. However it’s important to remember that there is never a ‘one size fits all’ solution to powered mobility, and it’s worth speaking to the DLF or your local disabled living centre to find out more about suitable products for you.

It can be much more difficult to move a manual wheelchair on a beach, as Able’s Julie Andrews has learned from experience. Her advice is: “Get someone to pull you backwards through the powdery soft part of the sand until you get to your chosen spot. For anyone wishing to take a meander along the beach, as long as you have fairly wide front and back tyres, the wetter more compacted areas of the beach are slightly more manageable but be aware of your wheels sinking if you stop. Failing all else, grab an available beach hunk and get him to throw you over his shoulder!”

BUYING AN ALL-TERRAIN WHEELCHAIR
All-terrain wheelchairs like the Landeez and the Hippocampe (pictured) are not just useful for the beach – they can also be used on snow, gravel and other tricky surfaces, giving people with mobility impairments the opportunity to more easily access the great outdoors.

The Hippocampe is designed for disabled people by disabled people, and can be towed, pushed or self-propelled. “The point of these buggies is that they allow the whole family to interact,” says Paul Prankard from Delishon Ltd, which sells the Hippocampe in the UK. “You have a push bar which also acts as an anti-tipping device, and a pull bar which makes it interactive for young children. And you’ve also got larger wheels so that people with upper body mobility can actually move the Hippocampe themselves.”

If you’re looking for a mobility aid to help you enjoy outdoor pursuits, it may be worth looking into buying an all-terrain chair of your own. You can find contact details for the suppliers of all the chairs listed in this article below.

FURTHER INFORMATION

SOUTH-WEST COAST
Disability Cornwall
01736 756 655
www.disabilitycornwall.org.uk

English Riviera visitor information
0870 70 70 010
www.englishriviera.co.uk

South West Coast Paths
www.southwestcoastpath.com
01392 383 560

South West Tourism
01392 353 222
www.accessiblesouthwest.co.uk

Torbay Council
01803 207 975 (beach information)
www.torbay.gov.uk

SOUTH COAST
Brighton and Hove Council
01273 290 000
www.brighton-hove.gov.uk

Brighton Tourist Information
0906 711 2255
(50p per minute)
www.visitbrighton.com

Hastings Council
0845 274 1001
www.hastings.gov.uk

YORKSHIRE COAST
Scarborough Shopmobility
01723 369 910
www.shopmobility.ik.com

Whitby DAG
01947 821 001
www.whitbydag.org.uk

Yorkshire Coast Tourist Board
01723 383 637
www.discoveryorkshirecoast.com

Yorkshire Tourist Board
0870 609 0000
www.yorkshirevisitor.com

GENERAL
Blue Flag Beaches
01942 612 638
www.blueflag.org.uk

Disabled Living
Foundation
0845 130 9177
www.dlf.org.uk

Hippocampe
01725 519 405
www.hippocampe.co.uk

JOB beach chair
0039 081 578 0960
www.neatech.it

Landeez sand wheelchair
0121 568 7326
www.wheelchaircorporation.co.uk

Mobi-Mat and Tiralo beach chair
0141 445 4488
www.uacgroup.co.uk

 

July/August 2007