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Thorpe Park is one of the UK’s largest and most popular theme park resorts. Located in the lush countryside of Surrey, the park welcomes over 1.5 million visitors annually and is home to some of the country’s most exhilarating rides. The resort includes a hotel and a water sports park as well as other major attractions and is part of the Merlin Entertainment Group, owners of some of the world’s most famous attractions including Legoland, Madame Tussauds, Sea World and Alton Towers.
ISCVE’s supporting member Contacta, was asked to provide solutions to improve accessibility at the ticket office area of Thorpe Park, who were determined to provide the best customer experience possible. Long customer queues can create inconvenience at tills, while a busy environment meant some customers struggled with communication at the ticket windows.
During the initial site survey, Contacta identified where problems lay so recommendations could be made. Initially, there was no active management of the queues at the Park entrance, causing delays for visitors. Also the ticket windows were not fitted with Speech Transfer Systems, meaning conversations through the glass screens were very difficult.
There were no assistive listening systems for visitors, meaning people with hearing loss could find communication difficult due to high levels of background noise.
A recommendation for the supply and installation of three solutions to tackle the issues effectively includes two audio-visual Queue Management Systems for both the Annual Pass and the Advanced Sales ticket offices allowing customers to be served quickly whilst staff operate more efficiently.
Contacta Speech Transfer Systems with staff headsets were recommended for the ticket window positions. Headsets decrease background noise for members of staff facilitating more intelligible conversations with customers.
The installation of Hearing Loop Systems at the ticket windows, powered by a Speech Transfer System amplifier, also improve communication for people with hearing loss.
The installation took place over two days with the installation of the Queue Management Systems covering a total of seventeen positions. Nine Speech Transfer Systems and Hearing Loop combinations are installed at the ticket windows.
Thorpe Park has taken a long-term approach to the newly installed technology. A regular maintenance contract ensures their investment is well maintained, allowing both visitors and staff to continue to enjoy hassle-free experiences at the ticket offices.
“Queue Management Systems help to get all the guests to a ticket window much quicker, as before no one would move forward if they could not see us behind the glass window. We had to shout to get customers attention.”
“It makes transactions faster as we are able to speak normally to guests rather than shout through the glass window to them. Our customer service is better because we are talking normally.
Thorpe Park Staff Members
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