A
new enterprise enabling disabled people to travel more freely has
been launched by a group of friends frustrated by lack of choice.
Called Matching Houses, the project is based on the established
principle of house swapping but has been adapted to suit the needs
of disabled people by offering a website (www.matchinghouses.com)
to bring people with the same or similar accessibility requirements
together.
The concept is the brainchild of Theo Blackmore, who is currently
doing a PhD in Disability Studies at Exeter University and has
had Multiple Sclerosis for over 10 years. He got together with
some friends, some of whom also have disabilities, to develop a
website with a sophisticated database which can link people anywhere
in the world with the same access needs and allow them to arrange
a house swap.
"The inspiration behind 'Matching
Houses' was the idea that disabled people will often travel abroad
on the understanding that the accommodation that they're going
to is fully accessible, only to find that their access needs have
not been met. For example, you get a wheelchair user who goes
to a hotel in Spain to discover on arrival that there's a massive
flight of stairs up to the front door and so they can't even
get into the building," said Theo.
"The idea of a house swap came about
because, for example, a wheelchair user in Cornwall will be able
to swap houses in eight of out ten cases with a wheelchair user
anywhere else in the world. They will have similar requirements
wherever they go, so if a wheelchair user lives in Majorca, they
might want to swap houses with someone who lives in this country
so they can go on holiday. Somebody from this country wants to
swap with someone in Majorca and away they go."
Theo went on to explain how the Matching
Houses website works. "You
enter your details, which are kept confidential, on the website
including your access requirements. The search engine in the website
will then pull out from the database all the other entries that
match with yours, ie. all the other accommodation details that
match your access needs.
"The database does all the hard work, sifting through a huge
number of properties and comes up with the ones that exactly match
your needs. It also comes up with the ones that don't quite meet
your needs but prioritises them all for you - those at the top of
the list are those that are most accessible for you, those at the
bottom of the list are ones that you need to clarify exactly what
might not meet your requirements.
"There is a then a link that you click on to send a potential swap
an email directly, asking them to get in contact, then you strike
up a one-to-one dialogue with that person. There is also an online
forum and an online meeting room where you can meet people and
just generally talk about properties in Spain perhaps, if that's
where you want to go."
Because the project is still so new, they are currently offering
free membership to the first people to sign up to the site in order
to develop the database.
"At some point we will have to charge.
The length of time that the free offer will last is dependant
upon the size of the database. We've restricted it so that the
first 1,000 people on the database will definitely be able to
register for free. It's not necessarily
time-limited at the moment, but the quicker you register on the
database, the more chance there is that your membership will be
free. In a month's time there might be 2,000 people on there, in
which case the free offer will have closed," said Theo.
The Matching Houses website also offers clear, step by step guidelines
on how to organise a house swap so both parties are completely
clear as to what to expect. There is also a section which helps
dispel any of the concerns you may have about swapping houses with
a stranger such as security and confidentiality.
Theo was keen to stress that the pros far outweigh the cons in
house swapping and that worldwide over 250,000 successful swaps
are arranged every year.
"Rather than thinking that you have strangers staying in your
house, you should think of it instead as not leaving your house empty
and having it cared for while you are away. Also, the connections
you make with your house swap partners can turn into lifelong friendships," said
Theo, adding: "You also get a much better feel for the places
you visit and enjoy more flexibility and freedom. You can prepare
meals at home, and come and go as you please whilst enjoying greater
privacy. What's more, it's a free place to stay!" he said.
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