Hotel named as autism champion as Liverpool bids for friendly UK first
An Easter Sunday lunch with a genuinely big difference is being held at Malmaison, this year.
As part of a bid to make Liverpool the UK’s first truly autism-friendly city, the waterfront hotel has just become an “autism champion”, and is planning a series of autism friendly events.
It begins with an Easter Sunday lunch on April 16, designed for families who would normally avoid restaurants on such busy days.
We want to make our hotel welcoming to everyone and this is important step
The hotel will host the event in it private function space which will be a calm and relaxed environment for families and there will even be a chill out area for kids.
As part of becoming an autism champion the hotel has fully trained its staff in autism awareness this includes how to recognise the signs that someone may have autism to the different ways people with autism can choose to communicate.
Garry Fortune, general manager of Malmaison Liverpool, said: “We want to make our hotel welcoming to everyone and this is important step that we have taken. We pride ourselves on giving the very best service to everyone and now we truly can.”
The hotel has joined charity Autism Together and community business Autism Adventures UK in their joint mission to make Liverpool the UK’s first truly autism-friendly city.
An autism-friendly city is one where people with the condition are able to live in and be a part of the community, be it using public transport, or taking part in sports and leisure activities, and eating in restaurants.
In supporting the campaign Malmaison Liverpool joins a number of business in the city, including Liverpool One shopping centre, Everton Football Club and National Museums Liverpool.
Chief Executive of Autism Together Robin Bush said, “It’s a real credit to this city that organisations of all shapes and sizes are supporting our project. In the end it’s all about people and the difference we can make to lives. We’re getting glowing reports from the families we support about their visits to our champions.”
Autism Adventures founder Julie Simpson, said: “The reason I want to do something is I want my son Joe, who is 12, to have somewhere to play, eat or shop. It’s so rewarding seeing businesses being open to the concept of being autism friendly. The response has been amazing. The thing that always drives me forward to do more is the thought I won’t always be here to have Joe’s back. It’s my job as his mum to do all I can to leave a world that is ready for him."
