Manchester Arena has been awarded gold status by music charity Attitude Is Everything.
The disability-led charity, which campaigns to improve Deaf and disabled people’s access to live music, recognises venues and festivals across the UK via its Charter of Best Practice, an industry standard for live venue and event accessibility.
Manchester Arena is now the only venue in the North West with a dedicated ‘Changing Places Toilet’ facility, which is one of four in Manchester City Centre, and all staff receive ongoing disability and equality awareness training.
Gideon Feldman, head of programmes for Attitude Is Everything said: “It’s really exciting to see the work that has been undertaken over the last few years from the Manchester Arena around the experience they offer customers, performers and their staffing team who are Deaf and disabled.
"The work undertaken to put the Charter in place has a wide implication on how the venues runs from sign language interpreting for performances on request to the Changing Places toilet installed and we’re delighted that Manchester Arena is now a Gold venue, the commitment shown to access from all is fantastic.”
We have invested over £40k for the installation of brand new facilities and staff training as part of the venue's large-scale redevelopment to mark our 25th anniversary
James Allen
Manchester Arena
The arena’s back stage areas have also been upgraded to ensure that they are fully accessible, while easy-read documents are available on the venue's website. In addition to a dedicated accessible bookings service, the venue now also offers online bookings for customers with access requirements through its ticketing partner, Ticketmaster.
James Allen, general manager of Manchester Arena, added: “Manchester Arena is committed to disability awareness and takes an inclusive approach at each stage of the customer and artist journey. The entire team has worked hard to make the necessary improvements as part of our ongoing commitment to customer experience.
"We have invested over £40K for the installation of brand new facilities and staff training as part of the venue’s large-scale redevelopment to mark our 25th anniversary next month and to ensure the venue’s future for the next 25 years. We are proud to work alongside Attitude is Everything adhering to their Charter of Best Practice to make sure that everyone has access to performances.”
