St John’s Hospital has been providing care to elderly disadvantaged people in Bath through its city almshouses since the 12th century.
It has produced the free guide to the best of Bath’s world famous architecture. The app, suitable for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, has a map of the city which shows people where they are. By clicking on pins marking key sights people reveal stunning photos of places such as the Royal Crescent, Pulteney Bridge and The Circus. Each of the 19 entries entry has specially-written expert text to accompany it.
For the charity, the app is a chance to affirm its commitment to the city it has served for many centuries while raising its profile and, in turn, its income through a donations page. Jonathan O’Shea, Chief Executive at St John’s Hospital, said, “While St John’s has a long history, we are also a charity which looks to the future. This is a great way to demonstrate that by using the latest technology we can reveal more about Bath and St John’s.
While there are a few generic guides to Bath available as apps, there are none with the expertise and quality of the St John’s historic visitor guide. One of the places featured on the app is St John’s main buildings set around Chapel Court. These are close to the source of the city’s hot springs and only yards off the well-trodden tourist trail, but are generally undiscovered – even by Bath residents.
The app was developed by Bristol-based creative agency 375 which has worked with clients such as Bristol Zoo, the Centre for Sustainable Energy and the Met Office. Managing Director Harvey Whitehead said, “When St John’s approached us with their idea we seized the opportunity. It was a fascinating challenge for us to be the first to produce such an App. I think we’ve created a superb tool for residents and visitors alike which is simple to use and packed with information. It’s also a great introduction to the work of this historic Bath charity. Above all, the app looks fantastic – in fact it looks almost as good as Bath itself.”
Download the app by visiting http://bit.ly/stjohnsbathapp and information is available on the St John’s web site at www.stjohnsbath.org.uk/iphone-app
