Overview

This is my local theatre and one of my favourite places to go! The staff are always incredibly friendly and always go the extra mile to make sure everyone is taken care of. The accessibility is great and the best part this time was the beautifully air-conditioned theatre. I went in 33° heat and it was pure bliss to sit in that theatre for the afternoon! The team had organised a parking spot for me in their car park, which was really helpful. While the public transport links are also great, I would have struggled in the hot weather, so it was great to have that option arranged for me. As well as their main theatre space which seats 130 people, they have three other performance and rehearsal spaces, two dance studios, a gym, and a small library in the building. The theatre programme has a wide range of shows. They also do film screenings and a huge range of classes for all ages.

Transport & Parking

There is a small car park here which is mainly for staff and has a barrier at the entrance. There is an accessible space available which can be booked with the team by calling or emailing in advance. If you’ve booked the accessible space, there is an intercom you press when you arrive which will connect you to the team inside who can open the barrier for you. There is a range of on-street parking available nearby but parking restrictions vary so make sure to check where you have parked. There are bus stops at the top of the road, Churchfields, where the buses 179 and W13 stop. The night bus N55 also stops here. South Woodford tube station is 0.7 miles away from the centre. It’s worth noting the main road, George Lane, is uphill from the station. It may be easier for some to get the bus from George Lane to the top of Churchfields, the road the centre is located on. Of course, heading back towards the station then it would be downhill and much easier!

Access

The centre is built across two buildings that are relatively old, one part being an old school building, but they’ve made sure that the accessibility is still great whichever part of the centre you are visiting. This time, I was going to see a performance in their main theatre space. The path to the entrance was flat and even with grab rails on either side. This led to two automatic sliding doors at the entrance of the building. The main foyer is currently operating part of the borough’s library service too. Half of the foyer space has shelving with books and some seating for parents and children to sit and read. The other half has tables and chair and a bar which has a range of drinks and snacks. The bar is fairly high but the staff are always available to help if anyone needs it. The route through the building to the main theatre space includes two small steps so, when the time came, a lovely member of staff took me the step-free route. This took us outside briefly but the walkway is covered so while it was a lovely day, if it had been raining it wouldn’t have been a problem. Inside the theatre, the staff had removed some of the seating on the front row so that I could stay in my wheelchair. Depending on the number of seats available for each show, there are usually one or two rows that are level with the floor and would be suitable for transferring. The entire front row has lots of space in front of it, so had I wanted to transfer it would have been very easy to do so, especially as the staff had taken me down before the rest of the audience, meaning there was lots of space. The rest of the seating was raked, with wide, shallow steps up to each row and a grab rail on the left-hand side as you ascended. The seats are allocated numbers so you can book standard seating online via their website. If you wanted a wheelchair space, like I did, then you need to call or email to make your booking. It’s a very simple process and they were very helpful. The theatre also has a hearing loop and I was told by a member of staff that their system is currently undergoing an upgrade too. Whenever needed, there are always warnings for any effects, such as strobe lighting. The team are really flexible and understanding so if someone needed a quieter space the staff will be able to help. They will also sometimes do BSL interpreted shows and relaxed performances.

Toilets

The accessible toilet was spacious and also had baby-changing facilities inside. The door opened inwards and didn’t require a RADAR key to access it. The door was very light and opened and closed very easily. The lock on the inside had a wide handle that raised and lowered to lock and unlock respectively. This was also light and easy to handle. There was lots of space inside the toilet There were three vertical grab rails mounted on the wall: two on either side above the sink, and one on the wall to the left of the toilet (when looking at the toilet). There was also one horizontal grab rail mounted on the other side of the toilet to the vertical one, and another grab rail that could be raised and lowered. There was lots of space alongside the toilet and it was a left-side transfer onto the toilet. The tap on the sink was manually operated (not an automatic sensor) and had a wall-mounted soap dispenser. It had an automatic hand-dryer that was mounted on the wall. There was a mirror mounted on the wall above the sink but it was a bit high. There were two bins in the toilet, one for feminine hygiene products and one for general waste. The general waste had a flip lid which required a small amount of pressure to open but was fairly easy. The red cord was hanging freely to the floor.

Staff

All the staff at the centre were wonderful. Booking was a simple process and the staff were really helpful with making sure I understood the seating options. When I arrived I was greeted by staff who made sure that I had everything I needed and was looked after. When time came to go to the auditorium I was taken down before the rest of the audience to give me time and space to get settled.