A new ‘mystery shopper’ service – whereby people with learning disabilities give city stores a user friendly rating – will be launched in Milton Keynes in the Spring.
The Approved scheme is run by registered charity Talkback, a voluntary organisation which is there for anyone with a learning disability and operates in Bucks, MK, Reading and North Yorkshire.
The Approved project aims to make shops more friendly and accessible to people with learning difficulties. As part of this, Talkback trains people with learning disabilities on what to look for in a store.
They key criteria are quality, service, access, surroundings and toilets
If a business “ticks all the boxes” they will receive a certificate and window sticker showing they are respectful of people with a learning disability.
Talkback worked very closely with the council’s Trading Standards team to broker meetings with key city centre stores. Trading Standards also helped with training people with learning disabilities on their consumer rights.
Trading Standard’s spokesperson, Deborah Charles said: “We wholeheartedly endorse the Approved scheme as sometimes – often not deliberately – stores can fall short on the level of service and ease of access and overall level of customer service that they can provide to people with learning disabilities.”
The launch takes place at 11am on April 6 2011 at ‘The Place to Eat’ Middleton Hall in the city centre’s John Lewis store.
John Lewis and Waitrose are the first shops in Milton Keynes to achieve the standard required and will receive their certificates at the launch. Paul Hunt, managing director of John Lewis Milton Keynes, said:
“As well as making sure that our shops are accessible and easy for people to use, we want all our customers to have a great experience when they shop with us. It’s important that our Partners understand that people with disabilities may have different requirements, and that we go the extra mile to make sure that it’s easy for everyone to shop with us.
“Achieving the Talkback standard is a great reflection of our commitment to customer service.”
Jean Rein, Chief Executive of Talkback, said: “As a user-led organisation we know what life looks like when you have a learning disability. People with a learning disability should have their own voice. Talkback helps people to find that voice.”
Cabinet member for Adults with learning disability’s Cllr Sam Potts said, “We need to keep on tracking and checking that services that are service users use are good quality and treat people with the respect they so rightly deserve.
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