Accessibility at Royal Armouries Museum

We welcome visitors with disabilities and are committed to providing appropriate facilities, and an enjoyable and memorable visit. We value your viewpoint on the services we provide and welcome feedback.

Information for Carers – updated December 2022

We encourage carers to carry out a pre-site visit, where appropriate, to ensure everyone makes the most of their visit whether they are in a group or visiting independently. Staff on site can answer your questions and direct you to areas of interest, including local facilities situated in the close vicinity.

Parking for visitors with disabilities

Museum disabled parking spaces

There are five accessible parking spaces provided for visitors with disabilities in the coach park area
The coach park is opposite the Holiday Inn, 100 metres (approximately 110 yards) from the museum entrance
These spaces are only provided during museum opening hours of 10 am to 5 pm

Multi-storey car park disabled parking spaces

There are about 40 blue badge parking bays in the multi-storey car park located next to the Holiday Inn.

The multi-storey car park is operated by CitiPark.
There is no discount for blue badge holders, standard tariff applies
Parking charges range from £2.50 to £13 – please check the CitiPark website for the most up to date information on parking charges.
Blue badge parking bays situated on all levels from level 2 upwards and located conveniently closest to the lifts
All floors have lift access to the ground floor and exit
The car park lifts exit onto a boulevard that provides a paved and step-free route to the museum entrance about 100 metres (110 yards) away.

Assistance dogs

Assistance dogs are welcome in the museum and can look forward to:

A water bowl provided on request in our Cafe
Plenty of space outside of the museum in Armouries Square for exercise and toilet.
Please be aware that the museum is situated next to a canal dock with deep water.

Wheelchairs

We have four manual wheelchairs available for use by visitors. The wheelchairs can be used for the duration of your visit. Please ask at the reception desk on your arrival.

Free to use
No booking required
Allocated on a first come, first served basis
All public areas of the museum are accessible by wheelchair

Mobility scooters

Mobility scooters are permitted in the museum, however we do not have any to loan.

Sensory backpacks

We have five sensory backpacks to encourage, support, and enhance the museum experience of children and young people on the autism spectrum and their families.

Backpack features

They contain fun and soothing sensory toys and ear-defenders
They are available free of charge
They can be used for the duration of your visit
Collect from Reception and return to Reception on departure

Accessible and Changing Places Toilets

Accessible Toilets

Accessible toilets can be found throughout the museum:

Ground floor café next to the main entrance
Floors 1, 2, and 4 close to the lift areas on the Dock side of the museum.
Please note that these toilets are 200 millimetres (approximately 8 inches) shorter than recommended in the current accessibility standards.

Toilet features

Braille door labels
Emergency alarm
Grab rails

Changing Places Toilets

Our Changing Places Toilet (CPT) is accessible to the public and located on the ground floor of the museum, approximately 36 metres (120 feet) from the main entrance. Access to the CPT is by Radar key which is available from our reception desk.

CPT facility features

Bench – Height adjustable, adult sized, wall mounted
Hoist – Ceiling, Loop
Washbasin – height adjustable
Peninsular toilet
Unisex
Non-slip floor
Emergency alarm
Privacy screen
Paper roll
Colostomy shelf
Signage in the room
Drop down grab rails
Wall grab rails
Large bin
Door width – 1 metre
Ceiling height – 2.4 metres
Floor space – 15 square metres

Accessible museum entrance

The museum entrance is 100 metres (approximately 110 yards) across Armouries Square from the museum’s disabled parking spaces, coach park, and drop-off point.

Armouries Square is an open and level paved area
All access routes to the museum entrance have a step-free path
Entrance to the museum is through two sets of automatic sliding glass doors
Beyond the entrance is a long atrium space containing access to the cafe, shop, and reception desk
Information and a list of the days events can be obtained from staff at the red reception desk
Reception desk staff will be pleased to assist you in anyway

Access to galleries

All galleries are accessible via the lifts
The lifts are located near the Hall of Steel on each floor
To reach floor 5 you need to take the gold-coloured lift
Lifts are fitted with:
- handrails
- operation buttons with braille labels
- Audio announcements
- Lift controls are at the rear of the car at a height suitable for wheelchair users
The maximum load for each lift is 16 persons/1,250 kilogrammes (approximately 2,755 pounds)
High bridges with glass balustrades that span the museum’s atrium can be used to access different galleries on the same floor.
Light levels within the galleries can be quite low.

Comfort seating

The museum is large with galleries and facilities over 6 floors. Therefore, we have provided seating throughout.

Benches with handles but without back rests can be found at the museum entrance.
A limited number of portable folding seats are provided in every gallery for visitors who find standing difficult.
Chairs with arms can be found in the window areas of some galleries and provide quiet spaces.

If you cannot find a seat while visiting please ask a member of staff who will be happy to assist.

Large print booklets

Large print booklets for our “Treasures trail” are available to borrow on request from gallery hosts on these floors.

Floor 2 – Large print “Treasures trail” booklet that covers floors 2 and 3
Floor 4 – Large print “Treasures trail” booklet that covers

Handling/tactile products

Currently, we do not offer handling sessions for regular visitors, but there are often opportunities for handling objects and asking questions after live shows in the galleries. Sometimes, the handling of objects is the focus of our gallery talks.

Object handling sessions are available for school groups to book.

Accessible presentations

Audio-visual displays

All films in the galleries are presented with:

Closed captions
Progress bar with timer
Controls to restart the presentation
Single ear-phone

Live performances

Live performances take place daily in a variety of dedicated spaces in the galleries. Performance areas are equipped with:

Performers with microphones
Speakers
Bench seating
Space for wheelchairs and mobility scooters

Access to outdoor event spaces

Tiltyard

The Tiltyard is an outdoor event space which is used for our horse events, including jousting. It is located opposite the Holiday Inn and close to the disabled parking bays. Accessibility for wheelchairs or mobility scooters is limited and varies for each event. Therefore, we encourage people to reach out to us when planning your visit.

Amphitheatre

The amphitheatre is an outdoor event space used occassionally for combat demonstrations and gun firing during special events. It is located at the north-west corner of the museum between the Hall of Steel and the canal dock. The step-free route from the museum entrance to the amphitheatre is paved with the Yorkshire stone and can be uneven. There is a ramp onto a block paved area that surrounds the amphitheatre. Seating is on the steps of the amphitheatre. The floor of the amphitheatre is paved with stone blocks which can make the surface uneven.

Staff awareness training

The Royal Armouries recognises that increasing staff awareness of the issues with Accessibility, Inclusion and Diversity is a vital part of removing those barriers experienced by people with disabilities, making them feel safe and welcome, and providing them with an enjoyable experience.

Action taken so far

Drafted a training plan and allocated resources to educate staff members about Access, Inclusion and Diversity
Every new colleague receives information about these issues during the induction process
Provided a series of dedicated seminars and workshops delivered by appropriate external organisations to ensure our teams are aware of the issues and feel confident to respond appropriately and sensitively to all our visitors
Individual team members who want more knowledge and training in this area can request further support through the personal development planning process
We are currently looking into a disability awareness module for our gallery team

Contact Us

If you require any additional information please contact us at enquiries@armouries.org.uk.