The Direct Access Festival team, largely comprised of disabled people, will offer free Sunflower Lanyards to disabled visitors of their Calm Corner marquee. These lanyards, used to signify that their holder has a hidden disability, are an important symbol in the promotion of disability rights.

“Although we work globally, Nantwich is really where it all began for Direct Access”, says Steve Dering, Chief Operations Officer for Direct Access.

“Access consultancy is about engaging local communities, so we are incredibly honoured to be bringing the first ever Calm Corner to one of our hometown’s key calendar events to accommodate autistic people if they need a reprieve from the commotion of the weekend”.

Founder and Director Steven Mifsud MBE added, “When community activities are inaccessible, risks are created for disabled people that are eager to attend, and this creates unjust and unfair exclusion”.

“We are delighted to be working with the Nantwich Food Festival organisers to deliver a quiet space for the hundreds of disabled people expected to attend this year’s festival. As people with a first-hand experience of disability, we understand how stressful large events can be, particularly for autistic people, people with ADHD and other sensory differences”.

“We cannot wait to play our part in making this an incredibly fun weekend for everybody in the Nantwich community and beyond”.

Direct Access previously designed and conceptualised the Calm Corner at Crewe Station, which was the first quiet space of its kind on the UK rail network.