A MULTI-agency approach is to be taken to make Alton more accessible to all. People with physical disabilities and those with pushchairs experience difficulties when venturing out because of uneven and sometimes narrow footpaths. And when they manage to get into town, they find some shops difficult to negotiate because of the positioning of displays and products - if they can get through the front door at all. Around 50 people, including students from Treloar College and the manager of a leading town centre supermarket, attended a public meeting last week to discuss ways to make the town a better place for everyone to visit, shop, live and work. The campaign came after students from Treloar College raised the accessibility problems they face in and around the town at a citizenship session organised by East Hampshire District Council in September. Following the debate, improvements were made to the paths and footpaths leading to Alton and Holybourne Post Office. But the students are determined to fight on to make the facilities that they want to use more accessible to them and others who have mobility difficulties. They told the meeting of the north west area community committee how narrow footpaths, a lack of dropped kerbs and motorists parking their cars across them hampered their independence. They also said they did not like the manner in which some staff in the town's shops treated them. Other problems were price labels being difficult to see and the placing of boxes in shops. David O'Donnell, committee chairman, said the meeting was an important first step in making the town accessible to all. But he expressed his disappointment that only one of the town's retailers bothered to attend the meeting. "We had a very good meeting and lot of good things came out of it," Mr O'Donnell said. "We had about 50 people there which included quite a lot of the students from Treloar College and some other local groups but, most disappointing of all, was the turnout from the local retailers. Only one turned up and that was Sainsbury's. "However its representative, Daryl Copper, was very supportive and has agreed on the next stages with us. "One of the things highlighted by the students was people's attitude to those in wheelchairs. Sometimes, for no malicious reason, people just don't know how to handle them and how to talk to them so they end up talking to the person pushing the wheelchair rather than the person in the wheelchair. "Daryl has agreed to have some training sessions with his staff about this with some of the students there too. This could then be passed on to other retailers. "There were issues about access to public transport and that is something that needs to be taken up with Hampshire County Council, South West Trains and taxis really. This is something that we are looking into. "There were physical barriers to access, ranging from a lack of dropped kerbs to things like parked cars obstructing dropped kerbs. Drivers don't do it on purpose, I just think sometimes they just don't realise they are doing it. "We are going to talk to Alton Town Council and Hampshire County Council about putting notices on people's cars who park on dropped kerbs to ask them not to do so in future. "We saw this meeting as very much the first step and we intend to have regular updates on the progress." As a result of the meeting, a steering group is to be formed in January comprising representatives from Treloar's, the district council, retailers and other interested groups to take the discussions further. Despite the promising start made, students at Treloar's have said that they were disappointed that more has not yet been done to improve accessibility. Mandy Wright, a teaching assistant at Treloar College, said: "I have spoken to most of the students and they all said the meeting was good but 'we felt we didn't get anything out of it. We were hoping that we would get more things actioned but we didn't'. "The biggest thing for them is the roads and footpaths in Holybourne. They use these a lot and they are not very disabled friendly. There is one particular path in Holybourne that is very difficult for the students to use because it is not very wide, even a pushchair can't use it and a pushchair is a lot smaller than a wheelchair." Daryl Copper, Sainsbury's store manager, said he was keen to help make the store more accessible. "A lot of the students from Treloar's use us every week and we are going to work with them to see how we can help them to help us," he said. "It was interesting to talk to the students to find out what their concerns were and their past experiences. One of the things they said was that they experienced problems when meeting with colleagues in store. It was suggested that perhaps we could offer better training to help disabled people." Mr O'Donnell said accessibility was a crucial issue and urged anyone interested in getting involved to get in touch with the district council. "We are asking businesses how welcome they make people feel who are in a wheelchair, or who have children in pushchairs, or who are elderly or have mobility problems? It is common sense that people are more likely to spend money in shops they can get into and feel comfortable in," he said. "I know that the first thing people generally think about is how much it will cost them to make changes, and some may resent having to spend money they feel they can't afford. "In fact there a number of simple things that can make a big difference. You don't necessarily have to do big things like putting in a new lift, small things like widening a door or keeping aisles clear are very important. We want to help retailers put into place simple changes that can make a big difference which will benefit their business." He added: "We are also considering giving shops that do something different and really make an effort to improve their accessibility some kind of certificate. It's all about pride in our community and making sure we reach out to all visitors and make them welcome." To find out more or to get involved call Guy Riddoch, community manager north, on 01730 234015 or e-mail [email protected]">[email protected] or e-mail [email protected]">[email protected]