The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has published its annual report ranking the performance of airports across the UK on the support they provide to disabled and less mobile passengers.
The report, which assessed 28 airports, found that overall progress is being made by airports with 14 of those surveyed rated as offering a ‘Good’ service and 11 offering a ‘Very Good’ service.
However, while no airport was rated as ‘Poor’ for the second year in a row, three hubs – London Heathrow, Edinburgh and Glasgow Prestwick were rated as ‘Needing improvement.’
“It is welcome that most airports scored positively,” commented Selina Chadha, Group Director for Consumers and Markets at the UK CAA. But she also pointed out “there is clearly more to do from those found to be needing improvement.”
A spokesperson for Edinburgh Airport told Regional Gateway that the CAA’s rating of ‘needing improvement’ was given during a particularly challenging time for its passengers with reduced mobility (PRM) operation, “due to a change of provider, staff shortages and a surge in demand for the service.”
The airport has since increased its investment in the service to more than GBP6 million and has worked closely with providers to implement new and improved processes and oversight. “These efforts have led to significant improvements and our goal remains to return to and maintain a Good or Very Good rating,” added Edinburgh’s spokesperson.
The CAA’s report acknowledged the operational issues faced by Edinburgh and caused by a change of contractor for its service provider in December 2023. The report also stated these issues “appear to be resolved”, with the airport now routinely meeting a ‘very good’ standard, having invested significantly in both facilities and staffing to address increasing demand for the service – a 30 per cent increased from the previous year.
How are the airports assessed?
The UK CAA’s standardised framework details how all passengers with disabilities and reduced mobility should be treated and holds airports and their partners accountable by publishing accessibility results annually.
Airports are assessed on their performance against waiting time targets for arriving and departing passengers including accuracy and robustness of data collection; a passenger survey of users of the assistance service; and consultation with disabled individuals and organisations.
What is letting Heathrow, Edinburgh and Glasgow down?
While Heathrow, the UK’s primary air transport hub, was found to generally have good service levels in three of its terminals (2,4 and 5), it was let down by waiting time standards at Terminal 3. Similarly, Edinburgh didn’t meet the standards for the provision of assistance in a timely manner. This was primarily due to operational issues caused by a change of contractor for its service provider earlier in the year.
Glasgow Prestwick failed to meet the standards to consult with disabled groups and individuals, although the CAA highlighted the airport has now committed to putting gin place an Access Forum.
“We want disabled passengers and those with limited mobility to be confident when travelling through UK airports,” added Chadha, explaining the report is about ensuring airports are meeting industry-wide accessibility goals. “Our mission is to protect people and we believe that the entire industry should be behind the goal of making aviation accessible to all,” she continued.
The airports that received a ‘Very Good’ rating included Belfast City, East Midlands, Newcastle and Teesside, which all retained their rating from the previous year.
UK CAA: Airport accessibility report
Belfast City Airport’s “unwavering commitment”
Belfast City, which works with CCS Airport Services to deliver accessibility services, said the continued ‘Very good’ rating reflects the unwavering commitment of its entire team to make travel accessible and welcoming for all.
“This achievement is a direct result of the dedication and care shown by our team every day,” said Nicola Stewart, Station Manager for CCS Airport Services at Belfast City. “Everyone plays a part in ensuring passengers feel supported from the moment they arrive at Belfast City Airport and we are pleased to contribute to an environment where individual needs are understood and met with compassion.”
Aberdeen, Belfast International, Bournemouth, Exeter and London Luton all improved on last year’s ‘Good’ rating and both Cardiff and London Gatwick made a significant improvement from their previous rating of ‘needing improvement.’
AirportsUK Policy Director, Christopher Snelling expressed his delight that 25 of the 28 airports assessed were ‘good’ or ‘very good’. He also noted that “82 per cent of disabled passengers reported being satisfied with their most recent flight, roughly similar to that of passengers as a whole and a notable improvement on the year before.”
Where the report identified issues, he added, “this will help those airports address concerns.”
The airports that received a ‘good’ rating, included Bristol, Liverpool and Norwich, all three of which had been rated as ‘needing improvement’ last year. Birmingham, Inverness, London City and Manchester all retained their ‘good’ rating and were joined by City of Derry, Cornwall Newquay, Glasgow, Leeds Bradford, London Stansted, London Southend and Southampton.
Snelling said the “report also shows that use of accessibility services has grown again, up from 4.6 to 5.5 million users in just one year, now representing almost 2 per cent of travellers.”
He did however urge caution as he noted, “services can always be better and airports will continue working with CAA and accessibility groups over the next year and beyond to improve services even further.”
Header image source: ACI
