Overview

Having read the previous two reviews, I nearly didn't visit Wimpole, but I am so glad we did! They have made so much progress since the last reviews, with a brand new car park, toilets and reception area in 2020 and constant progress towards good accessibility. They are currently working on access to the hall, with a new stair climber, which I only found out about as we were leaving.

Transport & Parking

The new car park is vast! Accessible parking is signposted and there are loads of spaces, clearly marked, and with good space around for unloading. The accessible car park is a good concrete surface and there are two nice wide paths up to the reception area.

Access

I visited with my mountain trike, and managed to get everywhere I wanted to go. The paths around the estate all have different surfaces and an access map has just been produced to show the different surfaces. We visited the walled gardens, which were great. There is one big door, which hubby opened and closed behind me. They are trying to keep rabbits out, ha ha! Redwoods Restaurant was pretty good. They've got ramps where needed but the surface is old stone, so uneven. Inside, there is decent space but getting from the table to the toilet was a bit of a faff. After lunch, we explored the rest of the grounds, except for the house, which has steps up. I later found out that they have just purchased a stair climber. You have to be able to transfer into their chair to use it but it then climbs up the stairs, which I might investigate another time. The surface immediately in front of the hall is deep pebble, which is terrible for many wheelchairs. I was glad of my trike! There is a multi-use, accessible trail that goes around the whole estate. It is hilly in places, and I was tired so we just did a short stretch there and back, rather than the 5.5. mile loop. Went through a field of sheep, many of which are due to lamb soon. They were quite chilled about us being there, even with my assistance dog.

Toilets

There are toilets at reception, the stable area, the restaurant and the house. They were all okay but the one at reception is best. I've deducted half a point because of poor/misleading signage for the restaurant toilets. The sign that points through the churchyard is pointing in completely the wrong direction.

Staff

The staff were great! Before we left, I went to talk to the chaps in reception to find out when all the improvements were done. He said between 2018 and 2020, but then covid hit and they were closed for a bit. He also told me about constant improvement work they are doing to improve access. One of our concerns about the 5.5 mile trail is the lack of toilets on the route and they are even looking at that... and refreshments for trail users.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

The site have a buggy to take you from the reception area to the main part of the estate. They also have several mobility scooters you can borrow, and two mountain trikes (push).

Photos