Accessibility Guide for Woodchester Mansion

Travel by public transport

There is a very infrequent bus (currently Stagecoach number 65) which runs from Stoud to Dursley and stops in Nympsfield village but not near to the Mansion. Check websites www.stagecoachbus.com or www.bustimes.org for times. There is approximately a mile and a half walk from Nympsfield village to the Mansion. 

Travel by taxi

You can get a taxi with https://www.yourcircle.org.uk/Services/11695 We have a transfer service for visitors.

Please check with any taxi firm that they are prepared to bring you into the National Trust car park. The Mansion provides an hourly minibus service on Open Days, which leaves from the bottom of the National Trust car park steps and ramp. Please see the website for minibus times and availability as it varies due to availability of volunteers. There is no provision to lift a wheelchair onto the minibus. However if you have mobility issues you can arrange to drive all the way down to the Mansion. Telephone the Mansion on 01453 861541, Monday to Friday 8.30am to 4pm, to discuss this. Please call during office hours at least 24 hours before you plan to visit.
Full access details for the National Trust car park can be found on the National Trust website here https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/woodchester-park#Facilities%20and%20access

Parking

There is parking near the venue. Parking is not free.

Unless prior arrangements are in place the nearest drop-off point is the National Trust owned Woodchester Park car park. It is approximately a three quarter mile walk from the car park down to the Mansion. A minibus transfer is available from the car park steps and ramp. See above for details. Full access details for this car park can be found on the National Trust website here https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/woodchester-park#Facilities%20and%20access From the car park to the entrance, there is level access. There is a permanent ramp.

The path is sloped.

The route is 600mm wide, or more.

The car park and the land (Woodchester Park) around Woodchester Mansion are owned by the National Trust. Full access details for Woodchester Park can be found on the National Trust website here https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/woodchester-park#Facilities%20and%20access

Path to main entrance

The path is sloped.

Main entrance

The main entrance has level access.

Although the front door is a manual door it is wedged open all the time the Mansion is open to the public. The access to the front door has a stone chipped path.

Visual Impairment - General Information

Some parts of the venue have low lighting.

Ticket/ information desk

Ticket / information desk

From the main entrance to the desk, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more.

The door is 900mm wide, or more.

The ticket/information desk is situated in the Entrance Hall. You can buy your tickets here, buy ice creams and pay for any items that you have chosen from the shop. NB there are no toilet facilities inside the Mansion. The Mansion toilets are outside and around the back of the building.

Things to See and Do

We have a complimentary ticket policy for personal assistants.

Entrance Hall

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more. The door is 900mm wide.

Some display information is low, for wheelchair users. There are seats.

This area houses the Ticket/Information desk and the ice cream sales. There are no ceilings in the Entrance Hall so there are views up into the higher levels of the Mansion. This area has a wooden floor. The door into the Entrance Hall is a designated fire exit.

The Main Corridor

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more. The door is 900mm wide.

Some display information is low, for wheelchair users.

When you leave the Entrance Hall you enter the Main Corrider which has a wooden floor. There is access from here to most of the downstairs rooms. If you turn right you head to the Dining Room, Library, Drawing Room, Chapel etc. If you turn left you head to the Shop, Servery, Tea Room and Kitchen.

Shop

The Shop

From the main entrance to the shop, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more. The door is 900mm wide.

The route through the shop is 800mm wide, or more.

The Shop can be accessed along the Tea Room Corridor from the Entrance Hall. There are a selection of artefacts in the cabinets there, plus guide books and souvenirs available to buy. There is a TV in the shop with a video showing an artist’s impression of a projected completion of the Mansion. It also shows some of the upstairs rooms. The video is 11 minutes in duration and does not have subtitles.

Place to eat and drink

The Servery

From the main entrance to the dining area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more. The door is 900mm wide.

To get to a table, there are no steps.

If you need table service, staff can help you.

The route through the dining area is 800mm wide, or more.

There is no background music.

We cater for vegetarian and gluten free (celiacs) specific diets.

The Servery can be accessed by turning left out of the Entrance Hall and is along the corridor on the left, or alternatively you can access it when you come through the Kitchen. The Servery sells light lunches, cakes, hot and cold drinks and alcohol to be consumed either in the Tea Room or outside at the picnic tables. The volunteers in the Servery are happy to carry your purchases to your choice of eating area.

Dining Room

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more.

The door is 900mm wide.

The Dining Room is accessed from the Main Corridor or from the Library. The entrance to this room from the Main Corridor is over an uneven stone surface. It can however by accessed more easily from the Library. There are no ceilings in the Dining Room so there are views upwards into the higher levels of the Mansion. There are doors leading to the Library and then onto the Drawing Room. This area has a wooden floor.

The Library

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more.

The door is 900mm wide.

You can access the Library either from the Dining Room, the Drawing Room or the Main Corridor. There are views from here into the higher levels of the Mansion. This area has a wooden floor.

Drawing Room

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more.

The door is 900mm wide.

You can access the Drawing Room either from the Library or the Main Corridor. This room is finished and is often used for wedding ceremonies. This area has a wooden floor.

The Chapel

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. There is a permanent ramp. The route is 900mm wide, or more.

The door is 900mm wide.

The Chapel has a stone vaulted ceiling with some very interesting roof bosses which can also be viewed through a mirror situated in the middle of the Chapel. This area has a wooden ramp from the Priests Door into here and it has a limecrete floor.

The East Corridor

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more.

The door is 900mm wide.

Leaving the Chapel you pass by the Sacristy and the Game Larder. The floors in the East Corridor and the rooms off this change from wooden to an uneven earth floor.

The Back (North Range) Corridor

The Back Corridor leads to the Laundry (turn right) and the Kitchen (turn right). The floor in the Back Corridor is an uneven earth floor. At either end of the Back Corridor there is a designated fire exit.

The Laundry

The Laundry has an uneven earth floor. There are views from here up into the Ironing Room.

The Kitchen

The Kitchen has an uneven stone floor. This room leads through to the Tea Room, Servery, Shop and back to the Entrance Hall.

The Tea Room

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more.

The door is 900mm wide.

The Tea Room can be accessed by turning left out of the Entrance Hall and is at the end of the corridor on the left, or alternatively you can access it when you come through the Kitchen. It has wooden tables and chairs. The chairs can be repositioned to allow wheelchairs at the tables. Only food purchased in the Servery can be consumed in here.

The Cellars

From the main entrance to this area, there are 20 steps. There is no lift and no ramp.

The Cellars are accessed from the Tea Room Corridor. There are chambers off to both sides of the Cellars. The steps to the Cellars are wooden and with a handrail. The floor is uneven and potentially slippy.

The Staircases

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 900mm wide, or more.

From the main entrance to this area, there are 20 steps. There is no lift and no ramp.

There are two main staircases leading up to the first floor, both made of stone. The staircase off the Tea Room corridor has a handrail but the Grand Staircase off the Main Corridor does not. There is a wooden staircase from the first floor to the second floor with a handrail and a stone spiral staircase with no handrail. All of the upstairs floors have wooden floors. These staircases lead to the Bat Observatory, the Bathroom, the Clock Tower Staircase, the First Floor Corridor, the Master Bedroom and the Chapel Balcony (spiral staircase). All the staircases have around 20 steps.

Picnic Area

Picnic Area

From the car park to the picnic area, there is level access. There is a permanent ramp. The path is 600mm wide, or more.

Some tables have space for wheelchair users. You can bring your own food to the picnic area.

Picnic area with picnic tables on lawn area. Mostly level surface but not smooth and a lot of grassed area. The picnic tables are reserved for the use of visitors consuming food bought in The Servery.

Grounds and Gardens

From the main entrance to this area, there is level access. The route is 1090mm wide, or more. The entrance is 1090mm wide.

Accessibility equipment

Interpretation boards and hanging banners

Assistance dogs are welcome in the house. Puppies in assistance dog training are welcome in the house as long as they are house trained. A water bowl for dogs is available at the main entrance to the house. The nearest toilet area for assistance dogs is outside the Mansion or in Woodchester Park.

Emergency evacuation procedures

We have emergency evacuation procedures for disabled visitors.

Customer care support

Some staff have disability awareness training.

We have information in some different languages (Spanish, German, French)

We have other services for people with accessibility requirements.

Driving down to the Mansion can be arranged for people with accessibility requirements. Please give at least 1 working day's notice. This would remove the need for the 15 minute walk from the National Trust car park to the Mansion. The Mansion toilets are outside and around the back and the access is fairly level. Our accessible toilet is left hand transfer.

This access statement does not contain personal opinions as to our suitability for those with access needs, but aims to accurately describe the facilities and services that we offer all our guests/visitors