Mobility

Wheelchair Access

Booking a Wheelchair space

All our performances have spaces for wheelchair users. We have four designated wheelchair spaces in the auditorium, each with a pair of companion seats next to them. We hold these back for every performance and they can be booked by calling Box Office on 01608 642350, or online by wheelchair users on our Access Register. If you are booking online, please remember to sign in before booking – you can sign in here. Should the event sell out, the companion seats will go on sale to the general public if not booked.

Wheelchair spaces are located here:

You can see their location on our welcome video at 5 minutes & 15 seconds in.

Transferring

Please note that booking a wheelchair space does not contain a seat. If you prefer to have a seat to transfer into please let Box Office know when booking your tickets. If you would prefer to transfer, you would need to be able to walk as far as the front doors in case of an evacuation, as there is nowhere in the auditorium to store a wheelchair.

Access to & inside The Theatre: level entry points

To get a good sense of the building and access to it, we recommend watching our visual walk through of The Theatre, and how to access it from the nearest disabled parking bay.

Level entry access to The Theatre is through our Bar door, located on Spring Street next to the main Theatre doors. From there, there is level access to the auditorium stalls seating area. Both the bar and the ticket collection desk are available on level access and have drop counters. The accessible toilet is accessed through the bar area.

Sadly, only the bar area and theatre stalls have level access - there are no lifts in our period building, so the Auditorium Balcony, The Gallery, The Space and The Rehearsal Room can currently only be accessed via a staircase.

To access the daytime Box Office in Goddards Lane, there is level access from the street but the steep camber of the road and many ridges should be noted. We are very happy to come out and assist you with your visit. Please just call us on 01608 642350 and we will come outside.

Please note that accessibility of the public area leading to The Theatre is restricted by paving quality and street camber. We recommend the video at the bottom of the page to gain a full picture of the approach.

Walkers and Mobility Aid Access

We want to make sure our Theatre is as accessible as possible, whilst noting that it is an old building with narrow aisles.

So that we can book you the best tickets for your needs, please let Box Office know of any aids you might bring with you when booking.

In the Theatre space the narrow aisles must be kept clear for fire safety. This means that any walkers or mobility aids (other than sticks) must be stored in the Bar area during the performance. To ensure your safety in the event of fire, this means you should be able to enter the auditorium (a distance up to 25 metres) without your mobility aid. If this is fine for you, please speak to one of our Ushers on arrival, who will help you with this.

If this is not possible for you, we will book a wheelchair space for you, and you may either bring a wheelchair or use our small folding wheelchair to access your space. Please note, as we have a limited number of folding wheelchairs it is essential to let our Box Office know when booking that you want to reserve a folding wheelchair. Folding wheelchairs require the aid of a carer to manage them, so please do bring a carer and let the team know that you need a carer ticket alongside yours. If you need to attend solo please let the Box Office know and we will try to source a volunteer support worker for you to support your use of the folding wheelchair.

Getting to The Theatre and Blue Badge Parking

For the best explanation of routes to and inside The Theatre, we recommend watching our visual walk through of The Theatre, and how to access it from the nearest disabled parking bay.

Step-free Access

Step-free access to The Theatre is through our Bar door, located on Spring Street next to the main Theatre doors. From there, there is level access to the auditorium stalls seating area, bar, ticket collection and toilets. There is a drop kerb near the Goddards Lane side of Spring Street for access, but please note that the pavement is narrow and that it is not level, with a slight slope down towards the road.

If you are accessing the daytime Box Office on Goddards Lane, please note that the road is situated on a hill with a steep slope, and that the pavement and road surface are a little uneven. The drop kerb to access the pavement from the road is at the top of the hill, near the A44 main road through town. If you need any in-person assistance from the Box Office and it is not accessible to you, please just give us a call on 01608 642350 and we will pop out.

Parking

The Theatre is situated on Spring Street, which is a narrow residential road. Unfortunately, due to this there is very limited parking directly outside the building. Outside the auditorium entrance there are double yellow lines, but you can drop off and walk someone to the bar/pick up here if mobility is an issue. Further up Spring Street there are a few spaces available, but please note it is often filled with residents’ cars.

The nearest disabled parking bays are located in the town centre car park, outside bookshop Jaffe & Neal. For their location from the bay to The Theatre please see the route in our video.

There are a further six disabled parking bays in the New Street long stay car park which is a 5 minute walk away at a brisk pace. The Albion Street car park is a 6 minute walk away at a brisk pace and does not have any disabled parking bays. For more details of the car parks please consult: www.westoxon.gov.uk/parking-travel-and-visitors/where-to-park

Public Transport

Our nearest bus stops are West Street stops B and C. You can check bus times for these stops at bustimes.org.

West Street is a short walk from The Theatre. For the most accessible route we recommend walking along the High Street, turning left through the short stay car park and right at Jaffe & Neal book shop until you hit Spring Street. The majority of the walk can be seen in our video. At a brisk pace it takes 5 minutes. Please note that there are kerbs, one road to cross and you will be travelling along a quiet road for part of the journey.