The National Gallery

squirrelpot

19 Nov 2014

4

4

Excellent accessibility

Date of visit: June 2016

I have experience of challenges around: moving around

I use or have experience of: powerchair

Overall Rating

Good

Accessible in all areas, good lifts, good toilets (with one gripe), friendly staff. One star lost overall for ramshackle not-fit-for-purpose borrowable wheelchairs, and for an out-of-reach red emergency cord in the accessible toilet (see below).

Disabled Access In and Around

Good

Plenty of lifts, easy to access all areas, ramps where needed. A happy and problem-free experience, with one caveat. If you are ambulant but appreciate borrowing a wheelchair at galleries and exhibitions, the National Gallery does offer such wheelchairs, but they are totally clapped-out, horribly old-fashioned, heavy and cumbersome, and the seats sag so much that your bum is squeezed against the folding part of the frame. This is a real pain in the arse (in the literal sense) and in reality these wheelchairs are not usable.

Parking & Transport

Average

Several bus routes will drop you off in Trafalgar Square but the nearest step-free stations are quite a long way off - Green Park and Westminster.

Accessible Toilets

Poor

Good accessible toilets in several locations. In the one toilet, the red emergency cord had been tied up out of reach in a complex knot, see my picture below. This is very silly and thoughtless. The red emergency cord should hang freely all the way to the floor so that it can be reached if someone falls to the floor in the often precarious transfer between wheelchair and toilet. In another toilet (see my other picture), the red cord is simply too short. Three stars lost for these failures.

Staff

Excellent

Staff are lovely throughout, helpful and friendly even when bored or grumpy.