"A woman said she was left "shocked" and felt "unfairly penalised" after she was told her disabled children could not eat in a restaurant. Kate Sicolo, from Truro, said she visited a Whitbread Premier Inn restaurant in London Paddington with her partner Emma and their two children. The couple took pre-prepared meals for their children, due to their disabilities, but Ms Sicolo said she was told by staff they could not eat them because of the company's no "outside food policy"."
"The couple said their daughter was tube fed and had liquidised food, and their son had minced food due to his Down's syndrome. Ms Sicolo said her family was approached by a member of staff and was told that Premier Inn's policy stated they could not bring in food from outside, and the couple were told they could eat but the children could not. "We had to leave the restaurant because we could not feed the children," she said."
"Whitbread said "inclusion is incredibly important" and added it was "sorry for the issue Kate, Emma and their children encountered". "While our team acted in good faith (for safety reasons linked to allergens it is generally not allowable to consume externally purchased food on our premises), clearly an exception should have been made to meet the needs of guests with disabilities," it continued."
A family visited a Premier Inn restaurant in London Paddington with two disabled children and pre-prepared meals suited to their needs. The children included one who was tube fed with liquidised food and one with Down's syndrome who required minced food. Staff enforced a company no outside-food policy and told the children they could not eat the meals brought in. The family left because they could not feed the children at the restaurant. The company apologised, said inclusion is important, cited allergen-related safety reasons, and acknowledged an exception should have been made. The family declined a voucher and said they are not seeking compensation.
Read at www.bbc.com
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