Great support for Habinteg's campaign #ForAccessibleHomes day of action | #ForAccessibleHomes News

Habinteg's campaign to raise awareness of the vital need to increase the number of accessible homes took off with a successful day of action on Friday 8 July.

There were many highlights from the day which involved Habinteg tenants and staff as well as influential organisations, interested individuals and local and national decision makers. 

Highlights of the #ForAccessibleHomes:

• Over 100 supportive organisations and individuals signed up to the campaign Thunderclap, delivering a collective rallying cry at 9am on Facebook and Twitter, enabling us to deliver the message over 300,000 times all at once.

• The #ForAccessibleHomes hashtag on Twitter became one of the top 100 trending items in the UK. The number of social media interactions was incredible with many organisations and individuals sharing their stories and picture messages with support from as far afield as New Zealand and Canada.

• A joint letter to The Guardian signed by Habinteg and 15 other influential organisations made a national media impact. Signatories from a range of sectors including NHF, CIH, Age UK, Disability Rights UK and the Town and Country Planning Association made the strong case For Accessible Homes. 

• Cabinet Minister Rt Hon Justine Greening MP visited her local Habinteg scheme to meet tenants and find out more about how their accessible homes have helped them. The Minister was happy to support the day  in Wandsworth saying on Twitter - "Really loved seeing everyone @Habinteg. Great to say hello to so many of your residents #ForAccessibleHomes." We'll have more details and photos from the day soon. 

• We often say that our tenants are the best advocates of the importance of accessible homes and their involvement and enthusiasm for the campaign has proved that. We received over 50 photos with key whiteboard messages from tenants and that really was the focal point of the whole campaign. You can see all the #ForAccessibleHomes photos on our Instagram account and via a look back at the #ForAccessibleHomes hashtag on Twitter.

The level and breadth of support puts the accessibility of new homes firmly on the agenda but the debate goes on. If you would like to get involved or give your opinion on these issues, please get in touch. You can follow us on Twitter @Habinteg where we'll keep the #ForAccessibleHomes hashtag going or follow us on Habinteg's Instagram account.