Virtual Tour Experts
Virtual Tour Experts (VTE) specialises in creating interactive digital environments that help people explore and understand places before they visit them. Through the Scaling Innovation Programme, VTE developed Accessible Exmouth, an immersive digital wayfinding platform designed with and for d/Deaf people and Hard of Hearing People to support more confident and independent travel around Exmouth and the surrounding transport network.
Working in partnership with the Deaf Academy, the first phase of the project combined 360-degree virtual tours, British Sign Language (BSL) content, interactive maps and transport information to help users familiarise themselves with local routes, transport hubs and key destinations before travelling. The next phase will see more helpful content added, such as interactive hotspots and scene guides.
The Challenge
For many Deaf people, travel information can be difficult to access. Public information is often heavily reliant on written text, while BSL provision can be limited or absent. Unfamiliar environments, unclear wayfinding and uncertainty about what to expect can also create anxiety when planning and undertaking journeys.
The project focused on addressing these barriers by providing accessible, visual and signed information that enables people to explore locations before travelling. The aim was to help users build confidence, reduce uncertainty and make informed decisions about how to navigate local transport routes and public spaces.
While initially developed with Deaf Academy students, staff and families in mind, the project was designed to benefit a much wider audience, including disabled people, older people, families and visitors unfamiliar with the area.
Developing the Solution
Accessible Exmouth combines a range of digital accessibility features into a single online platform.
The project created a virtual tour covering the Deaf Academy, Exmouth town centre, local bus routes and the railway station. Users can explore locations through immersive 360-degree imagery while accessing interactive maps, step-free route information and BSL videos embedded throughout the experience.
The team also developed new wayfinding templates that allow users to navigate between locations, including journeys involving public transport. Unlike traditional virtual tours focused on individual buildings, the project expanded the technology to support town-wide navigation and transport planning.
Importantly, the platform was designed as a scalable model that could be adapted for use in other towns, transport hubs and public environments.
Working with Deaf People
Co-production was at the heart of the project.
VTE worked closely with students and staff from the Deaf Academy throughout development. Workshops, demonstrations and feedback sessions helped identify the information users wanted most, the barriers they experienced when travelling and the accessibility features that would have the greatest impact.
Feedback directly influenced the design of the platform. BSL content was expanded, text-heavy sections were simplified, map filters were refined and additional locations were included following requests from participants. The project also worked with BSL specialists to ensure content was culturally appropriate, accessible and easy to understand.
Accessible engagement methods, including BSL interpretation, visual prompts and flexible communication formats, helped ensure participants could contribute throughout the project. This collaborative approach ensured that lived experience shaped both the content and functionality of the final platform.
Impact
Accessible Exmouth demonstrates how digital tools can help remove barriers before a journey even begins.
By enabling users to familiarise themselves with transport routes, stations, buildings and public spaces in advance, the platform helps reduce uncertainty and supports more confident journey planning. The inclusion of BSL videos, visual navigation tools and accessible mapping also provides alternatives to traditional text-based information.
The project has also created a scalable framework that can be applied in other locations, helping transport operators, local authorities and community organisations provide more accessible information for residents and visitors.
Beyond transport, the project demonstrates how accessible digital wayfinding can support wider participation in education, employment, leisure and community life.
What happens next?
The next stage of the project will focus on completing the integration of BSL content, undertaking large-scale user testing and refining the platform based on feedback from Deaf people and the wider community. QR codes will also be introduced across Exmouth to help people access the platform while travelling around the town.
Future ambitions include extending coverage to additional locations, working with transport operators and local authorities, and adapting the model for use in other towns and transport networks across the UK.
By combining accessible information, digital innovation and lived experience, Accessible Exmouth shows how better wayfinding can help create more confident, independent and inclusive journeys.
Take the Virtual Accessible Tour of Exmouth (in conjunction with the Deaf Academy)
The Virtual Accessible Tour of Exmouth is available for you to explore, and can be accessed via the link below
https://virtualtourcompany.co.uk/virtual-tours/portfolio/virtual-tour-portfolio/the-deaf-academy/