A WEST Devon resident called out for more Okehampton shops to be wheelchair friendly last week following a successful shopping trip to Okehampton’s local bookshop, Dogberry and Finch.

Jane Taylor, whose husband Gilby uses a wheelchair, praised Okehampton’s bookshop for clearly advertising that the premise was wheelchair accessible and providing a ramp which allowed Gilby to access the shop easily and purchase a book without any extra fuss.

Mrs Taylor said: “I think the important thing is shops and people don’t realise how great it is to be able to access a shop.

“When you’re in a wheelchair and limited in what you can do, those little things you are able to do are all the more important.”

Dogberry and Finch’s shop layout has also been designed to be wheelchair accessible and there are even seats available if someone needs to sit down.

Having had such a fantastic experience, Mr Taylor spoke of her delight on Facebook, which has been “liked” by over 100 Okehampton residents.

Admitting her amazement at such traction, Mrs Taylor is now calling out for more shops and public places in the town to become more accessible to those with disabilities.

But, from past experience, Mrs Taylor said she knows other places in the town that own equipment, such as ramps, to make the premises accessible but do not always advertise the fact.

“It just seems a great shame that so many shops in Okehampton are still not accessible. If you have a ramp that’s excellent,” added Mrs Taylor. “And if you have, advertise on Facebook [or somewhere else] that it’s accessible because we are not mind readers. We don’t know otherwise.”

The Equality Act 2010 requires that buildings make adjustments in order to provide easy access for disabled people.

Shops located in listed or older buildings can find it more difficult to make adaptations as owners are required to maintain the building as close to the original as possible.

Historic England has explained that it is still possible to make adaptations to older buildings without dramatically changing the structure.

This could include installing temporary ramps, providing larger signage for the visually-impaired or setting up an induction loop for those with a hearing impairment.

Dogberry and Finch is also the first business in Okehampton to sign up as a carer friendly business, part of the Carer Friendly Devon Community, organised by Devon Carers - an organisation that provides support and information to unpaid carers.

As part of the scheme, Devon Carers asks carer friendly businesses “to undertake carer awareness training to understand better the role of an unpaid carer, consider what they can do to support carers to make life a little easier for them, help them to raise awareness of carers and join in events such as Carers Week.”

For more information visit: www.devoncarers.org.uk/community/carer-friendly-devon/carer-friendly-communities.