Useless for wheelchair users - don't even bother going in
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Date of visit: September 2018
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
Bad
Most of this bookshop, devoted exclusively to Oxford University Press books, is on a sunken mezzanine and the basement, reachable only by staircases. I wasn't able to shop here. Zero stars.
Disabled Access In and Around
0Zero stars. The initial pleasure at finding a step-free entrance is quickly destroyed when you find that most of the books are in the sunken mezzanine level and in the basement, and these two areas are reachable only by stairs. So the vast majority of books in this shop are not accessible to wheelchair users and to anyone unable to use a staircase. Disgraceful. See my pictures below.
Parking & Transport
Good
Central Oxford is well-served by buses and the railway station, which is fully step-free, is less than a mile away. I don't know about parking in Oxford.
Accessible Toilets
0I never got far enough into the shop to find out if there's a toilet.
Staff
0The member of staff I spoke to was vaguely apologetic, and spoke briefly to someone else who claimed that they were not allowed to alter the building because of its age, and this is why there is no lift. This excuse is not acceptable. Many old buildings have a lift installed, and if you really can't bear to alter the fabric of the building, if you really insist on putting heritage before people, there are many other solutions, such as stairwell platform lifts, or platforms which ride up and down a staircase and fold away when they're not in use.
Additional Information
If you're a wheelchair user, or if you can't use staircases, don't even bother going to this OUP bookshop.
