Access to music venues for deaf and disabled people

Matthew Hancock MP calls on the government to do all it can to break down the barriers that make live music inaccessible to all writes Matthew Hancock for Politics Home (17/01/12).

For most people, watching live music is a thrill, a joy, and a great way to escape from the day to day. For some it’s a passion. For many disabled people, live music can be all the more important. But it's also that much harder to access.

In the recent past, a new generation of music venues have shown that creative, thoughtful disabled access to venues not only helps the lives of those with disabilities, but is good business too. Research shows that disabled attendance is rising sharply - this is a growth market.

But not all venues are up to scratch. I know well, from personal experience of taking a disabled friend to the theatre and gigs, what a difference is made by putting some thought into access.

It's not just about wheelchair access, but loos and hearing aid loops.

I am the patron of Attitude is Everything - a charity that exists to improve access for disabled music-lovers to see the bands they love. At the end of last year, they released the first comprehensive report into the state of access to Britain's live venues.

The report used the findings of 100 deaf and disabled ‘mystery shoppers’ who visited venues across the country and rated them on their accessibility. Their findings form the basis of their proposals:

First to improve enforcement of existing rules that say that reasonable steps should be taken to improve access, by making access a condition of license.

But perhaps more important, to promote best practice, and sign venues up to the Attitude is Everything Charter that is used by some of the top venues and festivals like Glastonbury and Latitude in Suffolk.

Most of us can enjoy live music just by turning up. We must do what we can to break down the barriers that make live music inaccessible to all.

Matthew Hancock had been Conservative MP for West Suffolk since 2010.