'Make Worthing beach accessible to wheelchairs'

Worthing resident Becca Torricelli has enjoyed living by the sea her whole life.

But in recent years she has not been able to visit the town’s stony beach as there are no facilities for her wheelchair.

So the 21-year-old has started a petition calling on Worthing Borough Council to provide portable tracks on the beach so wheelchair users can enjoy the seaside.

“When I was younger I had a beach wheelchair but they’re very expensive,” said Becca, who lives in Broadwater.

“It’s very difficult to transfer into them too. You need to be lifted into them, it’s quite a big spectacle.

“But for the past few years I just haven’t been able to go to the beach.

“I’m lucky because my dad can lift me into a camping chair so I can sort of sit on the stones.

Worthing beach is inaccessible to people with wheelchairs. Photo: Ray Turner

“I went to the beach two weekends ago and I was on the decking by the rowing club, it was only about five metres long.

“But a man saw we were trying to get on to the beach and said he had a piece of material he could reel out. It was about the size of a hay bale.

“I was able to get on to the beach. I had a really great day.

“After that I thought it’s something that should be permanent.”

Becca’s petition has garnered more than 1,300 signatures since she started it on Saturday.

She says the changes would be cheap and would benefit many beachgoers.

“It wouldn’t cost much and it would be low maintenance,” she said.

“It wouldn’t only be good for wheelchair users. Our beach is quite stony so elderly people and parents with pushchairs could use it too.

“A lot of other countries have them, in America they’re really good with it.”

Becca hopes Worthing Borough Council will take action

Becca now hopes to collect as many signatures as possible before making her case to the borough council and East Worthing MP Tim Loughton.

She said she was heartened by the amount of support she has received.

“I was really surprised how quickly I got signatures,” Becca said.

“I’ll write to them once I’ve got more signatures. I want to show the council this is something the community wants.”

To find out more about Becca’s petition, visit chng.it/ZwTPyrPf.