download here: Not Enough Wheels to Go Round
Popping to the shops, a wheel around the park, or a ramble in the countryside are considered “normal day-to-day activities” as defined under the Equality Act 2010 and should be available to all as a right.
We define “1kActive” as “having the capability to wheel/walk at least 1 km over a relatively flat hard surface; safely, reliably, repeatedly and in good time”.
- Need: Around 7 million people, or 10% of the UK population, need a significant mobility aid to be 1kActive.
- Provision: Only around 750,000 people have access to an appropriate mobility aid
There is clearly a chasm in provision – roughly 6.2 million people, or ~90% of those who need it, do not have easy access to an appropriate form of mobility aid for a 1kWheel.
Much work remains, including deeper and more comprehensive studies. There is much that national government, local government and the voluntary sector can, and hopefully will, do to improve the situation. It is likely that in the near future there will be very many more disabled people with access to wheeled mobility aids. It is therefore equally important that infrastructure in urban, rural and outdoor spaces is put in place to support this.
