Disabled music fans and their assistants attending events such as Glastonbury and Latitude Festival brought an estimated £7.5m to the economy in 2015.
19,000 more tickets were sold to disabled music fans in 2015 by some of the UK’s leading festivals and venues than the year before, according to charity Attitude is Everything.
Almost 144,000 tickets were sold by more than 100 festivals and venues that have signed up to Attitude is Everything’s Charter of Best Practice.
This generated an estimated £7.5m for the economy, through food, drink, and ticket spend by disabled fans and those accompanying them.
Wider portfolio
The charter encourages live music businesses to make an ongoing commitment to improving accessibility in their venues. Signatories include festivals and venues such as Reading and Leeds Festivals, Glastonbury, Latitude and the Cambridge Junction.
The 89 venues and festivals which had already signed up to the Charter in 2014 increased their combined disabled ticket sales by 19,000. As a proportion of total sales, disabled ticket sales increased from 0.71% in 2014 to 0.73% in 2015.
There were 14 new Charter signatories in 2015, including Newcastle’s Metro Radio Arena and the Lowry in Manchester. They sold a combined 11,000 disabled tickets and generated £500k in direct economic impact.
Commenting on the findings, Attitude is Everything CEO Suzanne Bull MBE said: “Each year we accredit a wide range of venues and festivals, from the biggest in the country to the smallest, and see them make a commitment to improving their access provision.
“As well as encouraging innovation and best practice, this practical and straightforward process sends out an important message of inclusivity to Deaf and disabled fans across the UK, who are attending live music events in ever increasing numbers. With 14 new sign-ups in 2015, ticket sales across 103 of our Charter venues and festivals contributed more than £7.5m to the UK’s music economy.”
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