Wimpole Estate Access Statement
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Wimpole Estate Access Statement Wimpole Estate is a grand working estate, complete with house, gardens, parkland and a home farm. Wimpole is genuine, active, bustling, practical, a working estate. We celebrate both the natural and designed beauty of the estate and our work enhances it. We are shaped by the past but not held back by it; we keep Wimpole’s spirit of progress alive. We celebrate conservation but also innovation, seeking out new ideas and new ways of doing our work. Contact details Wimpole Estate, Old Wimpole Road, Arrington, Cambridgeshire, SG8 OBW T: 01223 206000 E: [email protected] Points to note The Wimpole Estate includes park and woodland, historic hall, gardens and farm. It is an extensive site with plenty to see both indoors and outdoors. The site has varying surfaces, gradients, light and noise levels in its historic and public buildings and countryside. It can be very busy at weekends, holidays or on special event days. We work hard to increase accessibility to the site, working within the restrictions of a historic site not designed for public access. Staff and volunteers are available to help or answer questions throughout the site. There are 5 personal mobility scooters available for free loan from the Welcome Centre and 3 manual wheelchairs. An 8-seater golf buggy along with two Blue-Badge buggies, each with its own wheelchair ramp, is driven by volunteers to decrease walking distance between key features of the site. Induction loops can be found at ticket points as well as a wheelchair accessible ticket desk. There are accessible toilets and baby change facilities at all key locations. For the safety of our buildings, animals and visitors, Wimpole is a non-smoking site; this includes e-cigarettes and other variations. It is possible to come into close proximity with animals at the farm. Close supervision is recommended and safety measures including thorough handwashing are essential in this part of the visit. Assistance dogs are welcome throughout the site. All dogs are welcome in the parkland, on short leads around stock and during nesting season. Please ask for water at any of our catering points, where dog water bowls are available. There is limited mobile reception on site, in the event of an emergency please contact a member of staff who will have radio access to assistance or call our Welcome Centre on 01223 206559. Arrival & Parking Facilities The site can be found off the A1198 or A603, brown signs help direct from the A14, M11, A10 and A505. Since February 2020, we have moved our car park to a new location, which can accommodate the capacity we currently require for such a popular property. There are 700 hard standing spaces, with some under lighting, 10 electric vehicle charging spots and 46 Blue Badge parking spaces, a drop off point, coach parking and overflow parking for our busiest days. There is no charge for parking at Wimpole in the new car park, this is included with your membership or the new one-price Estate ticket (please see our website for pricing). There are 46 designated Blue Badge accessible parking spaces; more are allocated for busy event days. The designated spaces are at most 140m from the Welcome Building. 10 cycle racks are available by the welcome building, at the drop off point and outside the rectory restaurant. Designated accessible car parking is on level, tarmacked spacing. Other spaces in the main car park are also tarmacked, with the pathways leading to the visitor welcome building of lose stone/ aggregate set into tarmac. Please be aware there is a slight uphill gradient from all car parking spaces to the welcome building. At regular intervals along this pathway there are bench seats. On one side the benches have an arm support. On busy days a designated compacted ground and grass field is used for overflow parking, with spaces from 300m to the welcome center. In the event of designated spaces being full we will try to get you as close as possible to them or may be able to provide drop off using our buggy service. An 8-seater golf buggy is driven by volunteers, available daily between 10.00am and 16.00pm from mid-February to the end of October and 11am-4pm during the winter season. The buggy has fixed seating so may not be suitable for visitors unable to transfer from their own chairs. One folded wheelchair can be stored for transit. There are also two Blue Badge wheelchair accessible buggies, which have their own ramps. It is the responsibility of the carers to get the wheelchair user on and off the buggy by using the ramp. The driver will make sure the chair is secure before moving. The buggy is a request service offering transit between the Welcome Centre to the Stable Block and to the entrances of the hall. There is no set schedule but staff and volunteers throughout the site can call the driver to attend on request. Visitor Welcome The Ticket office is located near the new car park in the Hardwicke Gate Visitor Centre. In the welcome building, our only ticket and entry point, there are benches leading up to the entrance and indoor chairs which visitors are welcome to use. On our busiest days, queues do form, and we work hard to prevent your wait from being longer than necessary. The main entrance door is an automatic double door, and the tread points are flush with the floor for accessible use. There are 6 ticket points and tills. 4 are podium-style standing desks, which are 102cm tall, along with a traditional desk at the same height. Our accessible desk is 76cm tall, with a wheelchair cut out at the front for visitors to place their legs for proximity. There is a large amount of natural light from numerous windows in this area, supplemented by suspended and wall mounted electric lights. Chairs are available in our membership recruitment area. The space is large and can get very noisy when busy. An induction loop is available at the signed till to ease service. Please do ask a member of staff if you have not been directed to the relevant till or require assistance. Entry tickets provided are printed tickets given together with printed leaflets. Members will be scanned in via the tills or one of our portable scanners on busier days. There are 5 powered 1-person scooters available for loan, and 3 manual wheelchairs. While these are often available on arrival it is always recommended that you book in advance on 01223 206000, especially for weekends & bank holidays when we are at our busiest. The Visitor Centre flows into a pathway which leads to the stable block, which is 430m long, where you will find the Shop, Book shop and Stable Café. The path is hard-standing tarmac, allowing ease of use for wheelchairs and our buggies to run up and down between. The Path takes you into the grade 1 listed parkland and wildflower meadow areas in the appropriate months. Please ask in the welcome center if you wish to use the buggy. The Farm Wimpole Home Farm is an active, working farm. This means that animals are not trained pets and machinery is in use regularly in the yards. It is a fantastic place to learn about historical and modern organic farming but this comes with certain risks. Please always pay attention to signage on the site and follow any guidance given by members of our team. Handwashing is a vital part of our safety requirements on the farm. Please do not eat or drink anywhere on the farm site unless signed as safe to do so and after thorough handwashing. The entrance to the farm is 707m from the stable block, using the garden paths which are packed gravel and mostly level. Please be aware that the 6-seater buggy uses the main gravel paths only and this can need more space on the paths. The farm animals are not pets. It is recommended that all visitors keep their distance unless under supervision. The farm can get very noisy. Animal waste is present and it is strongly recommended that touching is minimised to avoid distress to the animals. All animals can kick or bite. Handwashing facilities are provided throughout the site, by the farm cafe, and at the farm exits. These are 680mm high and 400mm deep. The taps are operated with a long lateral switch operated 380mm high. It is vital that all visitors wash their hands with soap and water after any contact with animals, before eating or drinking and upon leaving the farm Assistance dogs are welcome at Home Farm, on short leads. Please do be aware of the impact of dogs on the farm animals and we ask your help in dealing with any distress caused. We frequently welcome assistance dogs in training to the farm to help them become accustomed to animals and the animals to them. There is a regular safety announcement made over a loudspeaker system, amplified throughout the farm site. The mobility scooters provided at the ticket offices are usable throughout the farm site. Small-wheeled vehicles may struggle in the gravelled and grassed zones, it is recommended you transfer if possible to one of our scooters. Pushchairs are welcome onsite. The nearest yards are almost all hard-standing, with some breaks in continuity so do look out for cracks and small ramps. The gravel yard in front of the barn is kept to a low level to ease access but alternative routes are easily visible.