South West airports rated in accessibility report
Exeter Airport retained its 'Very Good' rating, while Bristol and Cornwall Airport Newquay improved from 'Good' to 'Very Good'
The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority has revealed record-breaking demand for airport assistance services in its 2025/26 Airport Accessibility Report.
A total of 5.9 million passengers accessed assistance services at UK airports over the past year, underlining the need for enhanced accessibility as demand rises.
Exeter Airport retained its 'Very Good' rating, while Bristol and Cornwall Airport Newquay improved from 'Good' to 'Very Good'.
Of the 28 airports assessed, 19 received a 'Very Good' rating and nine were rated as 'Good'. No airports fell into 'Needs Improvement' or 'Poor' categories.
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.
Improved accessibility services at UK airports have been driven by a decade-long oversight through the Civil Aviation Authority's Accessibility Performance Framework. Introduced in 2014, the Framework sets standards for assisting passengers with disabilities or mobility issues.
The report outlines that since 2015, demand for assistance services surged by 115.8 percent, compared to a 23.9 percent overall passenger growth. Despite progress, challenges remain for disabled passengers, with a survey noting satisfaction levels among these travellers at 82 percent, lower than the overall passenger satisfaction score of 88 percent.
Anna Bowles, Head of Consumer Protection at the Civil Aviation Authority, emphasised ongoing efforts to enhance services: “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.”
The report evaluated 28 UK airports handling over 150,000 passengers in 2025, including site visits to 16 of the largest airports and detailed accessibility assessments at five sites.