Overview

Turner Contemporary has galleries of modern art. Please note it is called after J. M. W. Turner as he stayed in Margate in a house on the site of the gallery, when we visited there were no Turner paintings on display, so please do not go expecting to see Turner's art work. The gallery is impressively accessible with step free access throughout. It has one of the largest public lifts I have seen and accessible toilets. It is a modern building right on Margate's sea front. Well worth visiting if you are in Margate or making a special trip for if you like modern art.

Transport & Parking

The nearest railway station is Margate, which has step free access, there is an underground tunnel accessible by lifts and stairs with handrails both side, that connects the platforms. According to google it's about a 15 minute walk from the railway station to the gallery. It's a pleasant, level walk, mostly along the sea front. However, please remember during summer weekends and school holidays Margate can get very busy. If you want to take a taxi, immediately outside the station is a taxi drop off/ pick up point. We were advised by friends who live in Margate, not to assume there will be a taxi waiting at the rank, and to call one of the local taxi firms in advance, so it can be there for you when you arrive at the station. (We did this but arrived to see someone else getting in our taxi, as the taxi firm has sent us the car details so we knew it was our vehicle, however, the taxi driver denied this and drove off. The taxi firm was very apologetic and sent us another driver within 3-5 minutes. However, for the rest of our holiday in Margate we had no problem with the taxis, you just need to know at busy times you can be waiting 20+ minutes, so it is best to book ahead.

Access

GETTING IN Immediately in front of the gallery is a flight of stairs with handrails, and just to the right of it is a small opening which is the start of the step free route. There are permanent ramps that go up to the gallery entrance. ENTRANCE/ GROUND FLOOR There is a wide automatic entrance door which leads into a foyer exhibition space and shop. The gallery is on 2 floors and is entirely step free. There is some artwork on display but most of the exhibition space is on the first floor. There is an access station, next to the lift, which has wheelchairs to borrow, ear defenders, large print guides, folding portable stools and gallery toolkit bags for children. This is a lovely space, well thought out. FIRST FLOOR There is an enormous lift, possibly the largest one I've been in. It is designed to carry the paintings and sculptures so it is a large service lift in size, but it clean and modern. There are audio announcements for the floors. There are a series of gallery rooms, so have manual doors to enter by and others are open plan. The manual doors are a problem, they are heavy and difficult to open. They are also opaque so you can be on one side of the door and not able to attract attention for help. This is the only major failing in an otherwise very accessible ad well designed. The other area is the low, white cordoned around the paintings, as given that the walls are white there is not enough contrast for people with a visual impairment to notice it easily. A couple of the display cases were quite tight for my wheelchair to get under.

Toilets

The accessible toilets are all on the ground floor, all with manual doors and no need for a RADAR key. There are 2 accessible toilets large enough for wheelchair users, and 1 smaller one for people with mobility aids, this has a image of people with mobility aids on the front of the door, and inside there are grab rails, but no emergency cord. In the cafe area there is another accessible toilet suitable for wheelchair users. The regular accessible toilets all have grab rails, emergency cord and their bins are raised off the floor, making it easier for wheelchair users to manoeuvre. All toilets are clean, tidy and well maintained.

Staff

Staff were very friendly and helpful. We had a nice welcome when we arrived. I also spoke to a couple of members of staff about access, I think one was called Sandra, sorry if I have got that wrong, she made a written note of what I said particularly about the doors and was going to feedback to managers at the end of the day.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

This is a lovely gallery. It's a nice size, plenty to see but not too large. It has revolving exhibitions. We saw Ed Clark, and really enjoyed it. Margate itself is a nice seaside resort to visit, so you could make a day/ holiday of it and include the gallery. Please note it is closed on Mondays, and check latest information on its website. I hope something can be done to improve the internal doors to make them more accessible for disabled people to use independently. We really enjoyed our visits, its lovely and accessible, helpful staff, interesting galleries, sea views and a nice cafe, I had a lovely carrot cake there. Definitely would return and highly recommend.

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