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UK airports improve accessibility as demand for assistance reaches record levels

At a glance:

  • UK’s aviation regulator publishes its annual Airport Accessibility Report for 2025/26, which assesses the quality of assistance services provided to disabled passengers and passengers with reduced mobility at the UK's largest airports.
  • A record 5.9 million passengers used assistance services and facilities at UK airports in 2025, continuing a long-term trend of demand growing faster than overall passenger numbers.
  • Of the 28 airports assessed, 19 airports are ‘Very Good’ and 9 airports are ‘Good.’ No airports are rated ‘Needs Improvement’ or ‘Poor,’ highlighting the progress made since the Civil Aviation Authority’s Accessibility Performance Framework was introduced a decade ago.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority has today published its annual Airport Accessibility Report for 2025/26, highlighting continued improvements in airport accessibility alongside record demand for assistance services.

The report found that: 

19 airports achieved a ‘very good’ rating:

  • Aberdeen, Belfast City, Belfast International, Bournemouth, Bristol, Cardiff, Cornwall Newquay, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Exeter, Liverpool, London City, London Luton, London Gatwick, London Southend, Manchester, Newcastle, Southampton and Teesside.

Nine other airports received a ‘good’ ranking:

  • Birmingham, City of Derry, Glasgow, Glasgow Prestwick, Inverness, Leeds Bradford, London Heathrow, London Stansted and Norwich.

The results show the impact of more than a decade of oversight through the regulator’s Airport Accessibility Performance Framework introduced in 2014 to judge airports against a clear set of standards on how they provide assistance to passengers with disabilities or mobility issues. Thirteen airports were rated either 'Poor' or 'Needs Improvement' when the Framework was introduced in 2014. In the last decade airports have invested millions of pounds in accessibility services, facilities and staff training, driving a rise in standards across the UK. 

The latest report shows demand for airport assistance services continues to grow rapidly. Since 2015, requests for assistance have increased by 115.8 percent, compared with overall passenger growth of 23.9 percent.

While the report highlights the progress made by airports, it also shows that disabled passengers continue to face challenges when travelling. The Civil Aviation Authority's latest Aviation Consumer Survey found that overall passenger satisfaction with air travel reached 88 percent – the highest level recorded since the survey began in 2016. However, satisfaction among passengers with accessibility or disability needs was lower, at 82 percent. The survey also found that 58 percent of disabled consumers reported difficulties accessing or using airports and flying, with the most common needs relating to walking, standing or carrying luggage.

Anna Bowles, Head of Consumer Protection at the UK Civil Aviation Authority said:

“The progress made in improving airport accessibility over the last decade is encouraging. Through our annual assessments, we have challenged airports to raise standards, increase transparency and focus on the needs of disabled passengers. 

“The fact that no airport was rated 'Needs Improvement' or 'Poor' this year is welcome, but we cannot be complacent. Some disabled passengers still face difficulties when travelling, and with demand for assistance services continuing to rise, airports must continue to invest in assistance services. We will consult on a revised version of the Framework later this year as we continue to challenge airports to improve further.

“The Civil Aviation Bill currently before Parliament would, if approved, give us additional enforcement powers to better hold airports to account for meeting the legal rights of passengers, including in relation to accessibility.  This would in time help even further improve performance against our accessibility framework.”

This report assesses the 28 UK airports that handled more than 150,000 passengers during the 2025 calendar year against a standard framework and covers performance between April 2025 and March 2026.  During this time, the UK Civil Aviation Authority has also undertaken visits to 16 of the largest UK airports, observing the service provided to passengers requiring assistance at airports for around 1,400 flights. We have also conducted deep dive accessibility assessments of five airports (Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow Prestwick, and Liverpool).

The standardised Framework allows the regulator to give an overall assessment of how the needs of passengers with disabilities and reduced mobility are being met by airports’ accessibility services. Using the Framework, airports are assessed in three areas: 

  1. Performance against waiting time targets for arriving and departing passengers including accuracy and robustness of data collection;
  2. A Satisfaction Survey of users of the assistance service;
  3. Consultation with disabled individuals and organisations through Accessibility Forums.

Read the report: Airport Accessibility Performance Report 2025/26 (CAP3264)