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Weather apps 'costing attractions £137k a day'

Josh Sandiford,West Midlandsand
Sarah Julian,BBC Radio WM
News imageAlice Ryman A woman with blonde hair sits in an oversized striped deckchair bearing the Lichfield Maize Maze logo. She is wearing a grey polo shirt, jeans and muddy wellington boots, and is smiling at the camera. Tall green maize plants grow closely behind the deckchair.Alice Ryman
Lichfield Maize Maze director Alice Ryman says families are being put off by 'pessimistic' weather app icons

Tourist attractions across the West Midlands are among dozens of venues urging the Met Office to change how weather forecasts are displayed on apps.

The group, led by Chester Zoo, claims that "misleading" rain icons are costing some venues up to £137k a day by deterring families from visiting.

They say a single rain cloud icon summarising a 24-hour period gives the impression of a washout, even when most of the day is expected to be dry.

The Met Office said it was already working on improvements.

Eight attractions from across the West Midlands are among those who have signed the letter, including the West Midlands Safari Park, Drayton Manor Resort and the Black Country Living Museum.

News imageDudley Zoo A woman with dark hair wearing a black and white polka dot top stands in a gift shop surrounded by shelves of soft toy animals. She is leaning against a white display unit with her arm resting on the counter. Stuffed lions, bears, turtles and other animals are visible on the shelves behind and beside her. Dudley Zoo
Dudley Zoo operations manager Isobel Blackwell says 'misleading' weather app icons are putting off visitors

"We're an outdoor attraction at the end of the day, so people want the weather to be good," said Isobel Blackwell, operations manager at Dudley Zoo.

"We really do believe it is having an impact. You can literally see the trends."

News imageA screenshot of the Met Office app displaying the weather forecast for Birmingham. The main display shows 9C, overcast, with a 30% chance of rain and a feels-like temperature of 6C. Below, hourly forecasts from 12:00 to 16:00 show cloud and light rain icons with temperatures between 9C and 10C.
The Met Office weather app showing an overcast forecast for Birmingham with rain icons visible in the hourly breakdown

Alice Ryman, director of Lichfield Maize Maze, added: "I got up at 5.30 this morning to take the dogs out, looked at my app on my iPhone, and it had a rainy cloud for the day.

"Then when I clicked on it, it said there was a 25% chance of rain at two and three o'clock this afternoon.

"It's a beautiful day now [but] if I was a family waking up in the morning with a limited budget… and I saw rain clouds, I'd think, 'well, do you know what, I might go another day'."

News imageLichfield Maize Maze A drone photograph shows a large rectangular maize maze seen from directly above, with intricate winding paths cut into bright green crops. The design features elaborate swirling patterns and what appear to be animal shapes carved into the field. The maze is bordered by grass and farmland on all sides.Lichfield Maize Maze
Lichfield Maize Maze is one of the attractions backing the campaign for clearer weather forecasts

The group of signatories is not challenging forecast accuracy, but how information is visually presented.

They are calling for a roundtable with the Met Office, government and app developers to explore changes such as different icons, clearer summaries and indicators showing expected dry hours.

A Met Office spokesperson said: "We know the weather forecast is an important part of making plans, which is why [we have] already delivered a series of improvements to enhance the presentation of weather information which can support the visitor economy."

West Midlands signatories in full

Worcestershire

Victoria Faller, Project Development Manager - All Things Wild (Evesham)

Joanne Hammick, Managing Director - West Midlands Safari Park (Bewdley)

The Black Country

David Middlemiss, Deputy Chief Executive - Black Country Living Museum (Dudley)

Isobel Blackwell, Operations Manager - Dudley Zoological Society (Dudley)

Staffordshire

Victoria Lynn, Managing Director - Drayton Manor Resort (Tamworth)

Matt Lovatt, Park Director - Trentham Monkey Forest (Stoke-on-Trent)

Alice Ryman, Director - Lichfield Maize Maze

Shropshire

Beth Heath, Director of Fun - Shropshire Festivals

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