Accessible Beaches Australia has launched a beach access directory, the first of its kind in Australia, with detailed listings of accessible beaches.
Accessible Beaches Australia founder Shane Hryhorec, said, “We understand that information empowers people and the more information we can provide about accessibility to Australian beaches for people with disabilities, the better equipped those people will be to know if that beach is appropriate for them or not”.
Port Macquarie resident Rochelle, pictured, trialled the new equipment and described being able to visit a beach, something she had not been able to do for 10 years, “as a little miracle because it gave me a feeling of being normal”.
She said the website can now tell her if she can get onto a beach before having to travel to get there and know if there are accessible bathrooms, matting and accessible car parks available.
Hryhorec said Accessible Beaches were thrilled to partner with global financial group Deloitte to develop the resource and he was impressed by their passion for improving the experience of those with disabilities going to the beach.
“Deloitte recognised that this digital platform was essential to ensuring people with disability could access their local beaches. It was created for people with a disability to be made widely available at no cost to any person with a smartphone or computer and has the benefit of being an interactive information tool that is kept updated through audits and user feedback.
“Deloitte knew Accessible Beaches was just run by passionate volunteers looking for tech ways to promote accessible beach access,” he said.