A roll through time!
4
4
Date of visit: August 2026
I am a disabled person. I have experience of challenges around: accessing toilets and moving around.
I use or have experience of: disabled toilet, wheelchair
Overall Rating
Good
This museum has some incredible historic buildings that have been relocated from the surrounding areas and brought to the museum to preserve their history. I’m a big history fan, but so often, older structures aren’t very accessible to me in my wheelchair. But I was really surprised at how many places I could get into and the ways the team had made things as accessible as possible. And based on conversations I had with the team, they’re continuing to try and make their venue as accessible to all as possible which is wonderful. There’s a sensory garden with places to sit down and they also have a collection of telephone boxes from over the years and around the country which was really cool. Especially seeing a police box just like the TARDIS!
Disabled Access In and Around
Good
Throughout most of the museum there are concrete pathways which are really smooth and easy to navigate. There are some parts that have some incline to them but nothing severe. There are lots of structures, especially historic farm buildings, that you can view without having to navigate any doors or lips to enter. There are also some where the doorways have no step or lip at all and I could just roll inside to have a look. Lots of effort has been made to add ramps in as many places as they can which was wonderful. On the occasion that I couldn’t get into a building in my wheelchair I was still able to get a good view from the doorway. There is clear signage at each of the buildings which gives an explanation of what it is, what it was built and used for and when it was from. It was really fascinating to see so many different types of buildings on display.
Accessible facilities: Step-free entrance, Seating at regular intervals, Step-free access to most areas
Parking & Transport
Good
I travelled to this place by personal vehicle
They have a large car park which has a packed gravel floor. If you use a mobility aid or are unsteady on your feet and encounter a slightly larger stone it can be a bit bumpy but there are spaces very close to the concrete pathways that continue through the rest of the venue so you don’t have to manage the gravel for long.
Accessible facilities: Dedicated on-site parking
Accessible Toilets
Good
There was more than one accessible toilet which is always good to see. One was by the main entrance and there was another one inside one of the main buildings. The signage for all the toilets was really clear. I used the one inside the building. The corridor leading to the toilet was a bit narrow and the toilet itself was fairly small, so if you have a larger powerchair or require another pair of hands then you might prefer to use the other loo by the entrance. The door wasn’t heavy to open and had a small vertical grab rail on the left to open it. Once inside there was another small vertical grab rail on the inside and a small twist lock above it. The toilet had grab rails on either side of it and a toilet seat raiser that had been placed on the seat so it wasn’t too low. In front of the toilet was a small sink which had a single, manual tap that twisted to control the temperature of the water and lifted to control the flow of the water. They had a paper towel dispenser and a hand dryer available. There was also a mirror and a baby-changing table. A red emergency cord was hanging freely to the floor in between the toilet and the sink.
Facilities: Accessible toilet
Staff
Excellent
The staff were super friendly and welcoming and explained a bit about the accessibility of the buildings. They also talked to me about some of the things they are hoping to do to make things even more accessible which is always wonderful to see a venue working on.
