AIBU to think Merlin Ride Access passes are unfairly judged?

OMG....Have you even seen the latest report by the Spectator? Claimants getting UC get vastly reduced entry rates into many venues.

For instance...the Tower Of London, normal entry £111 compared to £4 for a ticket for those on UC!!!

And..... UC an £82 discount to London Zoo, reducing the family ticket from £108 to £26

HOW does it even pay to work in the UK?

We used to use it for our disabled son.

He doesn’t understand much but loved the feel of rollercoasters. Whilst, I can’t lift him now, I’m forever grateful for those memories. Should he not have gone because he couldn’t ’queue jump’?

We couldn’t queue as normal because he’s a full time wheelchair user. I would have to wheel him up to the ride then lift him out and hold him in place on the ride, one of his brothers would then run the wheelchair back to the gate.

Even using the exit pass there would be times when he couldn’t go on because he’d just had a seizure or needed oxygen. We’d then have to leave. Only queuing for 10 minutes meant the day was wasted - should be have queued for the hour?

Walk in my shoes for a day before you begrudge our use of RAP.

OP, I know it’s hard but you have to grow a thicker skin and ignore other people.

I think the Nimbus cards are handed out for any diagnosis of adhd or autism, so that means there are a lot more people who might be eligible. With their new rules (which may have been rescinded) I can have a rap pass as I have a stoma so have the pass for needing to use disabled toilets. I can queue just fine.

Of my autistic children, one can queue and the other can't. Yet they would both not get passes, as that is classed as difficulties with crowds. Nope, for ds2 it is definitely queues that are the issue, so theme parks would be completely inaccessible without the RAP and he is no longer eligible. Paultons park is better thsn Merlin anyway!

I identify with this completely, but frankly if in a flare-up a theme park trip would be an utter nightmare full stop. Queuing for one minute, or going on the ride itself would be impossible. To spend a day in fear and looking for toilets is horrible. When people say they have “irritable bowel” and that’s their reason for a pass, well frankly they can’t have a bowel condition very badly or they wouldn’t be setting foot in a place where you have to queue at all and where you are trapped for often ages on a ride. (Obviously incontinent children/adults with nappies excepted before anyone says anything.)

In that case she'll have INSET days same as everyone else. I've already booked to take mine to Chessington on 15th June. We went last year in the same week and it was deserted.

Wrong i advocate for him all the time.
What I won't do is use ridiculous passes that allows us to queue jump instead of going to quiet sessions where fewer people are there or are specifically set up for those with disabilities (admittedly they are often on a day thats usually quieter anyway).
What you've failed to understand is that im disabled too and have had to learn that not everything can be inclusive, there will always be things that we cant do no matter what considerations and adaptations are made.
The simple fact is these passes dont work as the system is too flawed and open to abuse. When a child/teen/young adult can keep their blood sugar levels at the correct levels for hours during school, walks, sports or other days out but suddenly cant for a queue at a theme park you have to question why that is and why they should have a pass in the 1st place, same with asd and adhd, if you cant handle the noise and crowds or time spent in a queue then why are you going to a crowded noisy environment where you spend half the day in queues?
What should be done instead of passes for a start we should :-
Make all spaces wheelchair accessible
Limit visitor numbers
Bring in virtual queues for everyone
Have seats and toilets closer to the rides
Have more accessible days

Any and all of the above would be better than what we have now.

We have small children and waited 2 hours+ for a ride in cbeebies land last time we went to alton towers, my husband took our younger child who was too small on the play area and they had fun, whilst I stood in a hot stuffy queue with a 4 and 6 year old. How's it fair our day is spent in a queue when we could be enjoying the grounds as a family, having a picnic, taking the kids on the playpark whilst we wait. I think they should offer the passes to everyone so everyone has an alloted slot and you only queue for say 20min max, if you miss your slot it times out again. No one likes to spend their entire day in 2 hour long queues, whether you have a disability or not. Why can't everyone queue virtually, surely we have the technology to do this now?

Perhaps pre-booked time slots would be better. Everyone could then book a time.

We use RAP and have had MAP's for over a decade. There are deffinitely more people using the RAP system than there used to be.

My biggest problem with RAP is when families have multiple RAP users and use them at the same time in the group. Eg:-

Family 1, no RAP. They enter AT and queue at Nemesis for an hour, they ride it then queue at Galactica for an hour, ride it and get lunch, queue for Smiler for an hour. Assuming an hour for lunch and walking they've been in the park for four hours and rode three big rides plus lunch.

Family 2, one RAP user. They enter AT and ride Nemesis with RAP. While waiting for it to count down they ride the barrels, small pirate ship and walk around the sea life. They then ride Galactica and have an hour count down. They get lunch and go on Gangsta Granny before riding Smiler. Three hours, they've rode the same three big rides and lunch plus some smaller rides.

Family 3, two RAP users. Enter the park and use RAP A for Nemesis. While that counts down the hour, they walk over to Galactica and use RAP B for that. They then go on the barrels and grab a hot dog. RAP A is now available again so they go on Smiler. RAP B is now ready so go on Rita. They get lunch and ride the curse of Alton Manor. They then use RAP A for 13 and RAP B for the Toxicator. 3 hours, 5 big rides plus lunch and smaller rides.

Each RAP user can take upto three people with them on a ride, the more RAP users in each grouo of four people the more rides they can get on together. This is the same for smaller children with cbeebies land.

Shall we limit your able bodied children's access to play parks, clubs, swimming pools, activity centres, their bikes, scooters, skates...

Lots of grants for holidays and days out for low income families, free food vouchers in the holidays etc. If the parents tried then they could make it work

You have to be able to get there?! It's not free to travel to a place. You clearly have no idea what some people face when it comes to poverty.

But you literally get maybe 5 or 6 rides in a day. Maybe 15 minutes. Is that 15 minutes of happiness worth the whole rest of the day spent completely overwhelmed by surroundings?!

Is there nothing else the child loves that doesn't also include a horrible environment they can't tolerate?!

My child (admittedly with no pass) cannot stand still in a queue. He has to move - climbing, pacing, wrestling 🙄 even cries and becomes anxious and agitated. He's a teenager not a toddler.

But he's fine with crowds and noise.

My other child has bowel issues so has a RAP pass for that and queuing. Lives to go on rollercoasters. Can just about tolerate queues although he has another medical issue that makes standing for an hour extremely tiring but doesn't get on well with intense crowds. Luckily on quiet days the crowds are usually easy to avoid.

Every child is different.

Maybe they should limit the number of times RAP can be used in a year rather than limiting the number of RAP users. From the number of people who claim to be cancelling their annual passes it seems some people are using the passes on a very regular basis. Maybe if each RAP card could be used e.g. twice a year this would mean those with the passes can still go and enjoy a theme park as a day out but not go so often that no one else can get on a ride. I last went to chessington 6 years ago - got my kids on 3 rides. Have never been back

considering the sun newpaper used to do offers every year and gave away free tickets and last year a company also did a very similar offer and gave away thousands of tickets, if the parents actually made the effort then yes they could go.

There is always a way to make it work if you really want to take your kids somewhere.

It's ok, you don't have to understand. You might though if you'd actually read the thread.

Your posts illustrate just how little knowledge/experience you have with disabled children & how little interest you have in increasing that knowledge.

That's also ok, but probably best you stop criticising people living with it day-in, day-out & thinking you know better.

You think it's a child's fault their parents are poorly paid?!

Some children are disabled due to the actions of parents eg consuming alcohol and drugs while pregnant, you aren't then going to say well their parents should have tried harder not to do that?!

A child growing up in a household in poverty is no more at fault than a child is who is growing up disabled - you should be ashamed of yourself for that attitude towards families with less money. There are huge numbers of people completely unable to save any money through no fault of their own.

Ever thought their child might actually love the actual rides?? The reason we all go to theme parks in the first place....

Plenty of people cant save for it. Because food, clothing and housing will always be a priority. I really though we’d moved past such ignorance wrt poverty.

Well Yes, a child is born with a disability, they cant help it. Its not their fault.

A child who is perfectly healthy but parents wont save up for a theme park day isn't comparable. There is fault there, its the parents fault for not finding ways to go or saving. A child with a disability cant just work harder and stop being disabled.

But why on earth would it be enjoyable to go to a theme park if your condition is unbearable in typical theme park conditions, I just don't get why you would actually want to go to sit on 5 2 minute rides in an entire day in an environment you find so uncomfortable?! Because apparently RAP passes don't mean you get on more stuff, so is the approx 15 minutes of entertainment really worth a whole day of massive discomfort due to crowds, overwhelm etc.

Why would anyone put their disabled child through that for the sake of a few very quick rides. When there are way more suitable places they could go like a remote nature walk in the woods or by a stream where there's water to play in, no other people/noise to cause sensory overwhelm

It makes no sense to me