Getting Out and About - NIN Member's Experiences of Travel
Report from National Involvement Network Meeting in Glasgow on 29th June 2023.
"Anything is possible if you put your mind to it" - Quote from NIN Member
Key Messages
Introduction
About this report
Tom's Story
What challenges do you face when getting out and about?
What's stopping people getting around and what can we do about it?
Your Questions Answered by Stagecoach
Next Steps
What's on your mind?
Useful information
Find out more
NIN members shared the wide range of things that they would like to get out and about to do, including: getting involved in sports; socialising; travel; pursuing and taking up new hobbies, activities and interests.
NIN members believe there are changes that need to happen so they can fully take part in society and the community and access the same services and facilities as everyone else.
Most important is having the right support and having services, including public transport, accessible to them.
"What's important to me is getting out and about without always having to rely on others” - Quote from NIN member
NIN is short for National Involvement Network. At the NIN we are working to make the Charter for Involvement a reality. We think everyone should have a voice and be heard. The Charter for Involvement sets out how people want to be involved in the support that they get, in the organisations that provide their services and in the wider community.
Getting out and about is a topic that NIN members have been talking about a lot in their local networks. In order to live independently and be involved in the community, people need to be able to move around freely. Some people need support to get out and about and transport needs to be accessible to all. We wanted to hear people's experiences of getting out and about. This report shows what NIN members said at the NIN meeting in Glasgow on 29th June 2023.
This meeting was chaired by Lynnette Linton. There were 55 people at the meeting in total.
This report is about the NIN meeting in Glasgow on 29th June 2023. The Theme was Getting Out and About. This links to Charter Statement 2 - we have a right to live our lives independently and Charter Statement 3 - we must be involved in our communities.
Tom Mitchell, Chair of Ayrshire Involvement Network, did a presentation about what people have been saying about transport in Ayrshire.
"We rely on public transport to get to the places we want. There are some places we can't get to on public transport, so we have to get a lift in a car. If there is no one free we can't go. Some people rely on paid workers with cars to get their shopping.”
"Bus and train services have been cut. A bus journey takes twice as long as in a car. The bus from Glasgow to Kilbirnie takes 1hour. The last bus is at 5.15. If you want to go home later, you can get 3 buses which takes 2 1⁄2 hours.”
The main problems in Ayrshire are:
Ideas from Ayrshire that might help:
We discussed the challenges getting out and about in groups. These were the main issues:
"Bus companies change routes and don't tell us. They say look up the website but some of us can't do that."
"Buses keep changing, I get confused"
"Buses don't turn up; I have to contact my mum to let her know as she'll be worried if Idon't come back on time"
"I got harassed on a train due to football. Staff did nothing about it."
"People don't move for me on buses. It shouldn't be up to my support to have to ask them. It's not nice"
"Someone thought I was drunk, they assumed it, as I had trouble walking. I don't even drink alcohol. It was embarrassing"
"McGill 's have cut a lot of services"
"The bus drove away without me because it was full"
"I couldn't find a seat on the bus. It can be very squeezed”
"Bus drivers should understand how we feel getting on a bus. Sometimes buses don't put the ramp out."
"Some buses are allowed 2 wheelchairs, but drivers think it's too much hard work"
"I got asked to show my bag. I was embarrassed as it had things for my bladder in."
"Bus drivers pull away too fast. They break too fast. If you can't see right, you need to be aware.
"I'm shy meeting people l'm not confident I'm unsure on my own and don't know the people on the bus."
"I get stressed on buses when someone random sits beside me I don't know. I don't like when buses are busy, I have autism"
"Sometimes when I get on a crowded bus or train I can get very anxious and can have panic attacks”
"The taxi was too low to get in"
"The new bus layout on stagecoach is not good, difficult for my wheelchair to manoeuvre"
"Underground is not good for wheelchairs. No access for wheelchairs at Buchanan Street"
"If you're dyslexic and don't read it's difficult at bus stations."
"I can't get my mobility scooter on the bus, it's too big. It means I can't get out of Dundee without someone supporting me.”
People went into groups to discuss 3 questions. This is what they said.
Sports - fishing, badminton, stock car racing, football watching, swimming, gym, ten-pin bowling, park-run, walking, St Mirren
Socialising - partying, clubbing, dates-and-mates, friendship club, drama group, The Attic, spending time with friends and family, meals out with friends, pub, night out
Travel - NYC, Inverness, Tenerife, in the environment, bus or train across Scotland, Canaries, Australia, go abroad, holiday, New Zealand, Germany for Euros, cruise, African safari, countryside
Hobbies - shopping, eating, artwork, reading, creative writing, Zumba, singing, drums, karaoke, cinema, art, DJ, music group
Other - housework, Sealife Centre, museums to learn, restaurant, eating, Dalkeith Country Park, Blair Drummond Safari Park, X-Cite Braehead, out on my scooter, church
Worries - lack of confidence, dislike public transport, getting to new places on my own, out on my scooter, change in routine, anxiety, motivation, never flown before, fear of flying
Lack of facilities and expense - toilets, cleanliness of toilets, disabled toilets on transport, no changing places, cost, money, football season tickets too expensive
No Access - deaf or hearing impairment, not accessible, stairs at the station, lack of access to bus timetables, no appropriate groups
No Support - hard planning, need a driver, need guide at the pool, not enough staff to support me, support hours, lack of mental health support
Other People - sound proofing, name calling, cars parking on pavements, too crowded to swim
Transport not available - no transport, transport issues, getting public transport with a wheelchair, lack of public transportation on a Sunday, need to get 2 buses!
Involve others - get the community involved, peer support, get support from friends and family, teamwork, involve local charities
Changes that would help - more support staff, train staff, more changing places, more transport for wheelchairs, cleaner toilets, better accessibility
Things you might try to do - look online, ask if there is a discount, ask for help, save money, book ahead of going to pool, encourage others to take the bus, plan ahead, meet new people, ask Scotrail staff for help
Things you might try to develop - compromise, help others to understand, understand other people, develop trust, help others
Alison McCluskie from Stagecoach was invited. Alison is Operations Director for the West of Scotland.
Stagecoach is a very big company. Across the UK, they have 8,000 buses and 24,000 staff. In the West of Scotland, they have 900 staff. 600 are drivers. All drivers must have a Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC). After they have done P C drivers do customer care training, which includes awareness of disabled passenger's needs.
On the next 2 pages is the information Alison gave the NIN in response to questions. We hope it is helpful for you.
Everyone wrote down one first step they are going to take to help them get out and about more. Here are a few examples:
"Speak up more"
"Plan the journey and meet up with neighbourhood networks group."
"Campaign about amenities at Glasgow Stations."
"Come to NIN group meetings."
Fiona Dawson NIN Co-Chair - "I want to encourage people to take part in the NIN, it's there for everyone”
Michael Connolly NIN Co-Chair - "The NIN has changed my life for the better, I would like to see more people getting involved”
"I want to try new experiences and believe in myself and be adventurous and meet new people" - Quote from NIN Member
We wanted to make sure the NIN is really reflecting the views of all its members and talking about the hot topics. At the end of the meeting everyone wrote down wrote down what feels important to them at the moment.
ARC Scotland will use this information to keep track of what really matters to NIN members. The NIN planning group will use it to help decide the right topics for meetings.
The Accessible Travel Hub is a place for you to find information, articles and guidance about accessible travel in Scotland. https://accessibletravel.scot/
Traveline Scotland: https://www.travelinescotland.com/
Stagecoach app: https://www.stagecoachbus.com/promos-and-offers/national/stagecoachbusapp
Stagecoach complaints
Phone 0345 241 8000
Or fill in a form on the website: https://www.stagecoachbus.com/help-and-contact/faqs/im-not-happy-how-do-i-make-a-complaint
McGill's Buses
Information and timetables: https://www.mcgillsbuses.co.uk/
Thistle Assistance Card and app
Go to this website for all the information on how to get the card or app: https://www.thistleassistance.com/
You can get the Card from:
Highlands and Islands (HITRANS) Phone: 01463 719002
Aberdeen (Nestrans) Phone: 01224 346680
Edinburgh (SEStran) Phone: 0131 524 5150
Glasgow (SPT) Phone: 0141 332 6811
Dumfries (SWestrans) Phone: 01387 260383
Perth (Tactran) Phone: 01738 475775
Shetland (ZetTrans) Phone: 01595 744 868
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an agreement that says what countries must do to make sure disabled people have the same rights as everybody else. It has 12 parts called Articles. Article 9 is about Accessibility. It says we must find out what stops people from fully taking part and make access easier for everyone. This includes being able to get out and about and to use transport on an equal basis.
The Equality Act 2010 says transport operators must make reasonable adjustments for disabled passengers. There are different rules for different types of transport: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rights-of-disabled-passengers-on-transport#buses-and-coaches
The Accessible Travel Framework for Scotland was written in 2016 by the Scottish Government. It finishes in 2026. It aims to do 4 things:
Go to our website to find out more and sign up to join the NIN: https://arcscotland.org.uk/involvement/
Phone 0131 663 4444
Email- nin@arcuk.org.uk
Facebook - @natinvnetwork
Twitter - @ARCScotlandNIN
Association for Real Change, Unit 12, Hardengreen Business Centre, Eskbank, Dalkeith, Midlothian, EH22 3NX 0131 663 4444 Registered Charity No. 285575, Scottish Charity No. SCO39129
