I am saying this from a position of ignorance and a genuine desire to be educated.
But what is the correct philosophy in this circumstance and how do you apply it architectually? Is the issue that there should not be a seperate wheelchair area, but that they should be able to use the whole front row in an unsegregated fashion?
I have not had much time to post recently, so apologies for the time taken to get back to you on this.
The "philosophy", so to speak, is whether wheelchair users are to be "included" so as to be allowed to participate in the full match day experience, or merely "accommodated" in that they have a space from which to view a game of football? The distinction appears subtle, but the implications are important.
As little as 30 years ago, the recently renamed "King Kenny Dalglish" stand was built with virtually zero thought for disabled people in general and wheelchair users in particular.
I'm not sure whether it had any wheelchair bays whatsoever.
Belatedly, the club brought the stand up to a reasonable standard by retrofitting wheelchair spaces. However, many of these wheelchair spaces are isolated and difficult to get to due to problems with lifts etc. Access to food and drinks immediately before the game and at half time, is not possible. It is also not possible to freely circulate with family or friends at these times, unlike able-bodied supporters who are free to do so. Wheelchair users have been "accommodated" but they haven't really been "included".
Some leeway, perhaps, has to be given to the club as they were trying to shoehorn disabled spaces into the pre-existing stand.
The new Main Stand on the other hand, has been virtually rebuilt from the first level up. As far as I am aware the sixth floor design allows wheelchair users to both watch the match and to freely circulate with other supporters, family and friends at all times. It is a great example of inclusive design.
On the fifth floor however, the architect has built disabled bays into the wings of the stand on the Kop end and Anfield road end.
These bays offer no direct access to food or drinks, and do not allow any mixing with family and friends. Being stuck on the middle floors, lift access is extremely poor and is the subject of constant complaints.
Those bays should never have been built in that fashion. They are by no means "inclusive".
The proposed plans for the Anfield Road stand contain a new section at the back of the stand exclusively for wheelchair users. It has its own entrance, a food kiosk and drinks kiosk. It also has its own lift. It is almost its own small, 26 seater private members club. So what's not to like? There are 26 extra wheelchair spaces. The facilities are good. The view is probably good. On the face of it, the offering is possibly better than anything the club has offered to wheelchair users in the past.
Except in one vital department...... inclusivity.
That's where the "philosophy" comes in. In a society that strives for Equality for all, would it be acceptable to corral any other social minority into such a segregated section? Absolutely not, so neither should it be acceptable to shoe-horn in wheelchair users into such a pen.
Yes, the proposed plans are an improvement on what's gone before, but they are not what wheelchair users should want or demand in terms of equality and inclusivity. In 20 years time people will look back on that section and wonder how on earth it was allowed to be built.
