Bewilderwood aims to be a space that welcomes everyone, but recognises that the nature of our parks present barriers and challenges for some of our visitors. Through this policy we hope to lay out how we feel we can help people to have a wonderful experience despite these. BeWILDerwood is an organisation committed to continual improvement and so welcomes any feedback on how the parks could become more accessible.
General support
We want anyone who might have additional needs to have a great day out in our parks. To support this we allow people or their carers to have a short pre-visit to assess the park and see how they can get the best out of it. We are always happy to answer any questions that may arise from such a visit.
Where a visitor will be unable to access the majority of our play structures due to an impairment of any kind, they will not be charged for an entry ticket. This must be known ahead of entry and can only be booked via the office. The ticket cannot be claimed after a visit or upon arrival.
As you would expect we have accessible toilets and parking available at every park. For details on their features please contact us in advance as we recognise that they may not be appropriate for all visitors.
People facing physical barriers to access
BeWILDerwood parks are always built sympathetically within their natural woodland landscapes. This means that the environment creates barriers to access such as uneven pathways, steep slopes and loose surfaces. Where appropriate we have a small number of “rugged” wheelchairs available. Please let us know ahead of time if you think these will improve your visit, so that we can check that these are appropriate for your needs and are prepared for you when you arrive.
The majority of our play structures are designed to incorporate physical challenges such as nets, balance beams and stairs. We recognise that this makes them inaccessible for some people. If after a pre-visit you believe that there is a temporary accommodation that would allow someone to be able to access a play structure we would encourage you to get in touch and we will see if this can be accommodated.
We have a small number of accessible swings designed for visitors with physical barriers to access. These do require a visitor to be lifted in and out of the seat.
Our crafts and storytelling activities are all totally accessible to those with physical barriers to access.
Our boat ride (Norfolk site only) is not accessible to those using wheelchairs and may be inappropriate for those using other mobility aids or where a person finds steps a barrier. If you believe that you will be unable to make use of the boat, but would still like to hear the story that takes place there, please let us know ahead of time, and if possible we will arrange to have a staff member accompany you through our alternative entry and tell you the story there.
Powered wheelchairs and mobility scooters are permitted on site but are limited to a maximum speed of 3mph and you may be asked to leave if the speed limit is exceeded.
Upon request we can provide you with a map of the park, with a recommended route which avoids challenging inclines or uneven surfaces.
People with visual impairments
BeWILDerwood’s natural environment can be challenging to those with visual impairments. There are a large number of areas with uneven surfaces and physical elements that are specifically designed to be challenging to navigate, including overhead obstacles. To get the best out of our play structures we recommend that visitors with visual impairments are accompanied at all times while they play.
Large print versions of our all of our printed materials can be provided upon request. These are printed upon request. We recommend that you call ahead to ensure that we can have them waiting for you.
We are very proud of our storytelling at BeWILDerwood and to help visitors with visual impairments get the most out of it we can introduce sensory elements into them if you inform us in advance of your visit.
Neurodivergence
As a wild environment and a theme park, Bewiilderwood can present some challenges for neurodivergent people. We recognise that these challenges can be very specific to individuals and so while we have some recommendations below, we encourage you to get in touch to discuss any specific concerns that you may have.
The parks can be loud and busy during school holidays, bank holidays and weekends with good weather. If you would like advice on quieter times to visit please get in touch and we will be able to find an ideal time for you. Otherwise, we have designed the parks to have areas that are more relaxed, such as our den building area. Each park is unique so if anyone is feeling a little overwhelmed at any time please let a member of staff know and they will be able to advise you on somewhere to take a break.
Our food outlets offer a wide range of food options. However, we recognise that food can be a challenging area for some people. All of our parks have a policy of allowing visitors to bring their own food and drinks, so there is no pressure to eat from our menu. If you do wish to do so we are happy to make this easier by sending you images of all our dishes, along with full list of ingredients to help diners gain familiarity with the menu.
Our staff can all be easily identified by either green t-shirts, green waterproof jackets, pink hoodies or pink sweatshirts. We are happy to send out images of these to help visitors feel comfortable with where they can go for help.
Our parks are themed around the BeWILDerwood series of books and so are filled with our magical characters. We recognise that these characters could be challenging to some visitors, especially our puppets which move and interact with audiences. We are happy to send out images of these characters and their corresponding puppets to help visitors feel comfortable in advance of their visit.
We understand that queuing can present a challenge for some young people. If you make us aware I advance of your estimated time of arrival ahead of your visit we can arrange for you to bypass the queue upon entry. We can also arrange for you to bypass the queue at our craft areas. To do so you will need to book a timeslot for these activities with staff before your and you will then we allowed access at this time. The majority of our park is a free to roam area. This means that queues can develop organically throughout the day for our structures, unfortunately we are unable to allow these queues to be bypassed.
People who use assistance dogs
BeWILDerwood allows assistance dogs of all kinds into the park and follows the Equality and Human Rights commission’s definition of an assistance dog.
Assistance dogs are not pets and are treated as ‘auxiliary aids’
Assistance dogs are highly trained which means they:
• will not wander freely around the premises
• will sit or lie quietly on the floor next to their owner
• are unlikely to foul in a public place
If your dog does not meet the above definition then we are unable to allow them into the park as it presents too high a hazard for our other visitors and to your dog.
Assistance dogs are permitted on our ground play elements but are not allowed on our larger play structures which incorporate nets and balance elements.
Assistance dogs are permitted to the top of our slides and zip lines but must never be left unaccompanied and will not be permitted on the slides themselves.
Deafness and those hard of hearing
We understand that some areas of our park involve audio elements that pose a barrier to deaf and hard of hearing visitors. Upon request we can provide a written version of our entry story at the Norfolk site, so that everyone can enjoy learning about the Twiggles and Boggles.
Unfortunately we do not have the resources to provide a signed version of our storytelling experience. However, if there are any accommodations, such as sitting close to amplifiers or sitting closer to performers to aid with lip reading, that would aid your enjoyment please let a member of staff know and they will do their best to support.