Overview

A beautiful, inspiring and inclusive space with a multitude of accessible toilets, accessibility features and of course artworks. With two cafes and a thoroughly modern Changing Places Toilet, this is a great place to spend an afternoon.

Transport & Parking

I'm scoring the museum lower here, solely to reflect that there is no car park or on-street parking. This, of course, is not the museum's fault, simply a result of its location. There's an NCP car park on Harriet Street, 160 meters away at Bon Accord. The number 19 First Bus also stops right across the road at Schoolhill.

Access

There's a lot to sing about at the museum. The entry has automatic doors, with a touchpad on the right as you enter. Please note that there's an incline up to the entrance, but the floors are level inside. There are Braille marked buttons in each of the spacious lifts, magnifiers and large print binders in most of the rooms and the Bloomberg Connects app is used to enhance the experience of blind and visually impaired visitors - though the app also has a lot of useful and interesting content for all users. The lifts, reception desk/gift shop, and both cafes, on the ground floor and the top floor, have operational induction loops. Each area has folding stools, and I saw wheelchairs near the reception desk, which can be borrowed. The staff have also completed Dementia Friends training.

Toilets

There are three accessible toilets at this location, as well as a Changing Places toilet. The first is located on the ground floor, through the café and on your right near Cowdray Hall. The toilet is accessed via a corridor, which has a light wooden door. The toilet itself has a sliding door. The room is spacious, with plenty of room for larger mobility devices. The toilet seat is directly ahead as you enter. A right-side transfer is possible, and there’s ample space for it. There are grab rails on either side of the seat, and the flush is a push button on the wall behind. There’s a low, small sink with a sensor tap and soap dispenser. There’s a large mirror, which is always good to see, and a baby changing table on the wall. The second toilet is also on the ground floor, in the corridor between Cowdray Hall and Hall 2. The toilet is standalone and is accessed via an outward-opening door. The toilet was in use, so I wasn't able to review it. Given the toilets I did access, it's safe to assume this one has the same modern features. The third accessible toilet is on the first floor, close to Hall 13. This one wasn’t as well signposted, so I missed it during my visit. The Changing Places toilet is on the second floor, on your right when you exit the lifts. This large space is well-equipped with everything you could need. The door opens inward and doesn’t require a radar key; it is locked from the inside by turning the knob. Inside, there’s a ceiling track hoist and a large changing bed, with plenty of space to manoeuvre even the largest mobility devices. The toilet has grab rails on both sides, with the flush on the wall behind and toilet paper to the left when seated. There’s room for a wheelchair transfer on either side, though it might feel a bit narrow to some. The sink is a deep, large basin with rails on both sides and a sensor tap. There are also bins for sanitary and general waste. The toilet was impressively clean, and the red cord was hanging to the floor—just as it should be!

Staff

I spoke with Amber at the reception desk, who was a joy to talk to. Amber provided me with a map and explained some of the accessibility features, including how they use the Bloomberg app to enhance the experience for blind visitors and how many of the rooms have large print binders and magnifiers. Amber is involved in the museum's accessibility group, so it was lovely to see how engaged she was.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

Though it’s not the fault of the museum, it would be great if there were some local parking or even a drop-off point closer to the door for disabled visitors. Better signage for the accessible toilet on the first floor would also be welcomed. A contrasting toilet seat and a differently coloured wall to easily identify the location of the toilet would be beneficial for visually impaired visitors.

Photos