Woburn Safari Park threw a birthday party for Wednesday, the one-eyed Bactrian camel, to celebrate the launch of a new range of visual aids.
A more relaxed experience
Days out can easily descend into stress and become overwhelming for children with additional needs.
To prevent that, Woburn Safari Park’s new communication tools have been created for autistic children and their families to make visiting the park a much more relaxed experience.
Up to 14 million people in the UK (20% of the population) experience communication difficulties at some point in their lives.
Finding their way around can therefore be daunting if information, signage and instructions are in writing only.
New symbols and images
To help overcome this barrier, Woburn Safari Park has partnered with visual communication experts Widgit to create resources to help – a selection of new symbols and images that support communication visually.
These include information about the animals, food options, and leisure activities.
They support neurodiverse people in sharing their preferences, interests, and needs, helping to foster a calmer and more enjoyable environment when visiting.
To commemorate the occasion, Woburn Safari Park and Widgit invited pupils from Windmill Hill School, a local special education needs school, to a party for Wednesday the camel’s second birthday.
The students prepared carrots for the camels to eat, and enjoyed learning about the camels’ unique personalities, habitats and food preferences.
Improved inclusion and accessibility
Natasha Kyle, head of education at Woburn Safari Park, said: “It was an absolute pleasure to see the students spending time with the camels.
“The new communication tools will improve inclusion and accessibility, as well as educate and inspire visitors about the importance of wildlife conservation. We’re looking forward to sharing them with every young person who comes to our safari park.”
Visual stories from Widgit are also available to help explain to children with special needs what will happen when they visit the safari park.
The stories ensure children feel prepared and are less likely to feel overwhelmed.
Guides with commonly used picture symbols are on hand for pre-verbal children and those with limited vocabulary to indicate what they like and dislike.
Just by pointing to the relevant symbol, they can share whether they want to get close to an animal or not.
UK’s first official symbol-friendly safari park
Rebecca Lynch, education specialist at Widgit, said: “We are proud to welcome Woburn Safari Park as the first official symbol-friendly safari park in the UK. The benefits of connecting with nature and animals are proven.
“You could see the joy in the children’s faces at the camel’s birthday party. It is great that more families can enjoy a fun, inspiring and memorable day out.”
Woburn Safari Park joins a fast-growing network of Widgit Symbol-friendly Organisations, which includes transport networks and tourist attractions.
Rebecca Lynch continues: “It is brilliant that across the country, organisations are realising the importance of opening up experiences and ensuring they are accessible to all.”
For more information on the symbols and resources Widgit has developed for families and to sign up for a free trial of its software for creating symbols, visit www.widgit.com.
About Widgit
For over 40 years, Widgit has developed innovative symbols and software used in over 10,000 schools, thousands of homes and multiple healthcare and leisure settings to support language, communication and learning.
Widgit Symbols are increasingly being used to ensure key public services, local attractions and sporting venues are inclusive for children and adults with special needs.
For more information, visit: www.widgit.com.
