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National Waterfront Museum short listed as Best Free Venue in the first Rough Guide to Accessible Britain Awards

The National Waterfront Museum in Swansea was recently awarded Highly Commended in the national Rough Guide to Accessible Britain Awards as one of the top accessible attractions in the UK in the Best Free Venue category.

Making the Highly Commended shortlist means that the Museum is one of a handful of tourist attractions in the UK that has gone above and beyond to provide accessible, inspirational and inclusive days out.

Judges praised the Museum as spacious, airy and everything a modern museum should be. The Museum was applauded for providing the entire history of Wales. Judges also loved that visitors are positively encouraged to join in and interact with exhibits, and that the entire experience is thoroughly encouraging.

Other attractions also highly commended in the Best Free Venue category include The National Gallery, London; Horniman Museum and Gardens, London. The winner in the Rough Guide to Accessible Britain Awards Best Free Venue category was Locomotion: National Railway Museum, Shildon, Co Durham.

All Highly Commended attractions are united by their awareness and understanding of their visitors’ needs as well as their creativity and attention to detail in meeting those needs.

Speaking about the news, Head of the National Waterfront Museum Steph Mastoris said:

“Being placed on the short list for this award is a great achievement for us. We’re dedicated to making the Museum as accessible and enjoyable for everyone, so this plays testament to all that hard work. It also recognises our commitment to providing greater access to the Museum’s collections and exhibitions.”

The Awards, supported by Motability Operations and launched to coincide with the third edition of The Rough Guide to Accessible Britain, were presented by adventurer and TV personality Ben Fogle at a reception in London’s Tate Modern.

Ben Fogle, presenter of the Rough Guide to Accessible Britain Awards, explained:

“I have been lucky enough to travel and have some amazing adventures over the years, but I have realised the most beautiful scenery and the most important history is here on our doorstep within hundreds of great UK attractions. Everyone, regardless of any disability or accessibility requirements, should be able to experience these great places of interest.

“The Accessible Britain Awards mark the achievements of attractions, however large or small, across the UK that have demonstrated considerable effort and creativity in providing inclusive experiences for disabled visitors. The National Waterfront Museum should be really proud of their achievement as a Highly Commended attraction. Both the Awards and I hope to inspire more people to get about and discover more of the UK’s best sites.”

Attractions were whittled down by Rough Guides’ expert reviewers and judging panel into four categories: Best Family Venue, Best Active Venue, Best Heritage Venue and Best Free Venue. The judges then made a final assessment of the reviewers’ submissions to select the winning and highly commended attractions. The Readers’ Choice Venue, was voted for by consumers online at www.accessibleguide.co.uk from a shortlist of 10 attractions.

The panel of judges included Ian Macrae, editor of Disability Now; Martin Dunford, founder, Rough Guides; Lara Masters, Britain’s Missing Top Model judge and Rough Guide reviewer; and Delia Ray, head of marketing, Motability Operations.

The Accessible Britain Awards, and The Rough Guide to Accessible Britain, are supported by Motability, the leading car scheme for disabled people which provides a worry-free motoring package to over half a million people in the UK.

A full review of each winner - including details of how they achieved their accolade - will feature in the third edition of The Rough Guide to Accessible Britain, due for publication in April 2010. The Guide, available FREE to Blue Badge holders, includes comprehensive details of over 180 inspirational days out for disabled people and their families.

For more information on The Rough Guide to Accessible Britain see www.motability.co.uk/news-views-and-events/rough-guide-to-accessible-britain/

Notes to editor

For more details about the National Waterfront Museum, contact 01792 638970.

For more information about the awards, contact Katie Wright, Sarah Rathbone or Candice Wagener at Siren on 020 3008 6280 / 07595 055 882

About Rough Guides

An award-winning CoolBrand?, passionate for telling it like it is, Rough Guides is a leading travel content provider with more than 700 travel guides, gift-books, maps, phrasebooks, bespoke custom publishing guides and digital products, including eBooks and mobile applications. With accurate, up-to-date information and informed, contemporary writing, Rough Guides also produces books on a range of subjects, from the bestselling Rough Guide to Pregnancy and Birth to zeitgeist books such as the Rough Guide to iPods, iTunes, and Music Online. For more information visit www.roughguides.com. Make The Most Of Your Time On Earth™

About Motability

Motability offers disabled people a worry-free motoring package including a brand new car every three years with insurance for two named drivers, servicing and maintenance, full RAC breakdown assistance, annual car tax disc delivered to your door, an allowance of 60,000 miles over three years and tyre and windscreen replacement. There are also many car adaptations available at no extra cost as part of Motability’s Managed Adaptations Programme.