Cotswold Outdoor

Date of visit: June 2016

I am a disabled person. I have experience of challenges around: accessing toilets and moving around.

I use or have experience of: disabled toilet

Overall Rating

Although staff will provide a wheelchair ramp to give access from the street to the ground floor, there is no access to any other floor in this shop. It is very hard to summon staff to let them know you would like to come in: there is no doorbell or other means of alerting them to your presence. I had to ask a random member of the public to pop in and tell them I was outside waiting to be let in.

Disabled Access In and Around

There is a very big step up into the shop. Staff will provide a wheelchair ramp for you to enter the shop, but once inside you will find that only the ground floor is accessible, there is no lift to the upstairs areas. It is very hard to let staff know that you want to come into the shop - a doorbell is needed.

Parking & Transport

Green Park Station is fully step-free and is only a few minutes walk/roll away. Many bus routes will drop you off very near the shop.

Accessible Toilets

0

This shop doesn't have toilets.

Staff

The two men who brought the wheelchair ramp were friendly, helpful, and apologetic about the fact that although they could let me into the shop, I would not be able to browse anywhere except on the ground floor. As I wanted to browse menswear, which is all upstairs, this was not much use to me. The staff did, however, offer to bring me anything I wanted from upstairs. I appreciated their thoughtfulness and helpfulness, but this is really no substitute for being allowed to browse like anyone else.

Additional Information

Cotswold Outdoor may not realise this, but their clothing is very useful to wheelchair users. I buy a lot of stuff at this sort of shop, as it's resilient, wind-proof and waterproof. They are missing good business by making their shops (not just this one) partly or wholly inaccessible to wheelchair users.

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