Disabled residents of a recently-completed Somerset housing estate face a longer journey to access local facilities due to a lack of convenient step-free access.

Bovis Homes has been constructing the Priory Fields development of 203 new homes on the western edge of Wells, just north of the Strawberry Line multi-user path which links the homes to the city's leisure centre.

Able-bodied residents moving into the new homes are able to access the Strawberry Line via a set of steps, very close to the site of a planned school – while disabled residents have to take the long way around and use a similar access at the south-western corner of the site.

Campaign group Accessible Wells have called on the developer to replace the steps with a ramp, accusing Bovis Homes of "permissive discrimination".

The Vistry Group (which owns Bovis Homes) said it had "no intention of discriminating" against disabled people but that it was not practical to deliver a ramp in this location.

Accessible Wells members Theo van Hensbergen and Dick Hodgson joined the Local Democracy Reporting Service at the Priory Fields site on Monday morning (January 20).

Mr van Hensbergen said he became aware of the issue with this development during a wider survey of Wells' footpaths, intended to pinpoint which routes across the city needed to be made more accessible to those in wheelchairs or mobility scooters.

He said: "It just made me stop and laugh, because of how ridiculous it is.

"It's an abomination that someone should think of putting in a set of steps, when it wouldn't take too much imagination to imagine a slope instead.

"All of the paths within the estate are model, as far as I'm concerned – but this is an obvious blight. It's permissive discrimination.

"Imagine a situation where it is cold and raining, you are in your wheelchair and you want to get from your estate to the leisure centre with your young child.

"You notice how the other parents hop up the steps and then resign yourself to the fact that someone thought it was okay to require that you will have to make a pretty long detour to get there. That is what disability discrimination looks and feels like.

"One of main Vistry's slogans is 'do the right thing' – there is no way that here they have done the right thing.

"People are going to come by here and moan about it for years to come unless they fix this."

Accessible Wells has been pushing for numerous improvements to the pavements and other thoroughfares across the city, delivering a petition to Somerset Council in late-September 2024 signed by more than 1,400 concerned citizens.

It has identified 16 "improvement projects" which could make the city "more normal" for disabled residents visitors – ranging from a crackdown on dog fouling and improving disabled toilets to tackling cars parking on the pavement and enhancing access to footpaths (including the Strawberry Line).

Mr Hodgson, a retired civil engineer and wheelchair user, said he had experienced "a number of accidents" getting around the city, even with his relatively advanced wheelchair.

He said: "I've faced cars driving up pavements – it's surprising how easy it is to have a crash.

"I can use my current model within my house, and I can turn on the spot, but there's still only so much I can do.

"I can guarantee that you could get a slope into the Priory Fields site, with a slightly longer run-up."

Mr van Hensbergen added: "The good news is that Somerset Council is now talking to us about some re-mediations they're intending to make, which is great news.

"Dog fouling is a big concern. If you're in a wheelchair which you push along yourself, or a mother with a pushchair, or you're blind, you can see an accident coming on, can't you?

"There are councils around the country who have put in place a number of simple measures to reduce this. Education is needed, but why don't our shops have poop scoops, so when something happens outside their shop, it can be removed?"

In addition to addressing the Priory Fields access issue, Mr van Hensbergen said he wanted Wells businesses to step up to the mark and make it much easier for disabled residents to access their shops.

He said: "There is a lack of premises in Wells which bother to make reasonable adjustments.

"We have the shining example of the Bishop's Palace, where over the last year, responding to feedback, they've made adjustments to allow people to enjoy every aspect of the estate.

"I estimate that around a sixth of the shops in Wells are not accessible. I think shopkeepers tend to worry about how much money it will cost, but a simple thing like a button or bell at the door so people can call for attention is reasonable.

"There are some medieval cities in Europe, just like Wells, where you can get served at the door if a given shop is not accessible."

The Vistry Group said the various access points to the site had been agreed with Mendip District Council when planning permission was granted in July 2018, arguing that it would not be feasible to deliver a ramp in place of the current steps.

A spokesman said: "We understand the frustration this has caused to wheelchair users; however, we have absolutely no intention of discriminating against any person who cannot use these steps.

"The steps replace a set of old steps that were previously located there, and they have been built according to the design approved by the local planning authority.

"Technical engineers consulted on this proposal and confirmed a step-free ramp could not be built in this location due to the steep gradient of the land.

"This path is not a public right of way, but instead provides an additional entrance and exit to the new development.

"Public, step-free access to the development is available via the cycle path nearby."

For more information on the work of Accessible Wells, including how to volunteer, email [email protected].