Accessible tourism is about making it easy for all people to enjoy tourism experiences. According to the UN, an estimated 650 million people in the world live with disabilities. Together with their families, that means that about 2 million people are directly affected by disability, representing almost one third of the world's population. More people have access needs; for example, older and less mobile people or people with pushchairs have access needs. The European population is ageing: by 2050 the number of people over65 will be 3 times what is was in 2003. For all of these people, travelling can be a real challenge. They represent a huge market potential for tourism which today remains vastly under-served. Making places more accessible is a social responsibility but also acompelling business case to boost the competitiveness of tourism in Europe.The Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROWTH), has responsibility for helping turn the EU into a smart, sustainable, and inclusive economy by implementing the industrial and sectorial policies of the flagship Europe 2020 initiative, fostering entrepreneurship and for the COSME programme (Competitiveness of Enterprises and SMEs) which recently called for proposals to facilitate transnational tourism for seniors in low season, recognising the substantial market availableIn July 2014, DG GROWTH held a conference and commissioned three reports detailing the current state of accessibility in tourism: the marketplace, skills and training needs and travel patterns. Two projects (TACTALL and TAFCITY) are mentioned; both aredescribed as innovative and useful; however, the awareness training they offered has not been made available on a wide basis, mainly because they were LLP 'pilots'. Some members of the project teams that created these projects feel that they have the knowledge, experience and enthusiasm to enhance, adapt and deliver sustainable training, with EU certification accepted by many member states.The unemployment rates in partners' countries is high, particularly in the under 30s. Setting up their own business is a viable option for many young people. Many rural areas have no work other than that provided by SMEs or micro businesses; many of these areinvolved in the tourist industry. The marketplace potentially is very large and growing. Recommendations in the 2014 report mentioned have been taken into account in this proposal, together with the consortium's now extensive knowledge and experience.This project will deliver accessibility as a new opportunity for the tourism market, creating a modular course using innovative methods: co-creation (Living Lab) and including disabled people in the curriculum design. Four modules will cover entrepreneurship, including social enterprise; accessibility awareness and comprehension; a standard that could be embedded into any curriculum with EU certification pursued; accessible tourism; marketing accessible tourism (in particular to open up the out-of-season market for older persons). It will also create co-operation between education, business, social enterprises, NGOs and similar to raise awareness of accessibility. A business case for accessible tourism will be created, to ensure businesses recognise thepotential of the market available. In order to raise the profile of accessibility, via local, regional, national and pan-European networks, businesses associations, NGOs and similar, an online network/forum and quality evalation facility will be designed and delivered . An evaluation/review product, Acc Advisor (similar to the popular Trip Advisor) and an App are deliverables. It is certainly intended to make GROWMAT sustainable, seeking 'corporate' sponsorship, social enterprises or using crowd funding to maintain the profileThe partnership has a mix of skills: 3 VET institutions, 2 of them with experience of projects involving accessibility and elderly people and their needs; a University of Applied Science, with valuable knowledge of entrepreneurship and co-creation (Living Lab) methodology; a UK charity dealing with older people and knowledge of active ageing; a private training company who is also an entrepreneur; another entrepreneur who specialises in 'Design for All'; a European VET network with 1500 members.The project will run events and attend events to enable the partnership to find ‘champions’ (a person who vigorously supports or defends a person or cause.); the champions are considered very important to the project.The beneficiaries of this project include people of varying abilities, older people, anyone less mobile, students (particularly in hospitality and tourism), teachers and trainers, adults, unemployed persons, employers and staff.The potential long-term benefit of this project is for accessibility comprehension to be accepted as a basic transversal skill.