Access Statement: LGBTQ+ Leadership Programme

At Stonewall, we believe that all attendees should be able to fully participate in our events and feel comfortable doing so. 

We are taking measures and efforts to ensure that we organise events that are accessible to all. We commit to ensuring that as far as possible we work with you to accommodate any adjustments that you require. We will take feedback on access issues seriously and work to ensure that we improve and develop after every event.

Please find the Stonewall LGBTQ+ Leadership Programme 2023 Access Statement below. An access statement provides more information about the venue to help you understand the accessibility of the programme and ask for other measures that you need.

If you would like a more detailed version or have any questions, please email us at empowerment@stonewall.org.uk or call us on 020 7593 1850 and we will get back to you.

Venue

Waterhouse Building, De Vere Latimer Estate, Church Lane, Chesham HP5 1UG

Here is a link to the floor plan of the venue.

The venue is wheelchair accessible. There is free wifi available. For anyone who needs a personal evacuation plan, please email empowerment@stonewall.org.uk and we will arrange this with you.

Parking

Accessible parking for wheelchair users is available on site. All parking can be reserved, please let us know in advance if you wish to reserve parking space.

There is a flat paved path from the car park to the Waterhouse building. There isn’t step free access from the street to the Waterhouse building but there is a wheelchair accessible lift/ramp.

Reception/Registration Area

When you enter the venue registration takes place on the ground floor.

Corridors and Access Routes

The corridors/access routes: Wide corridors, all public doors are double doors, door to bedrooms and syndicate rooms are single doors. Please note, this section will be updated with specific measurements after confirmation with the venue.

The floors of all meeting rooms are made of carpet. The floors of corridors/access routes are made of carpet and vinyl.

Room Details

Lighting throughout the venue is florescent.

The main plenary room:

• The room has two step access but ramp access can be put in place for wheelchair users.
• The doors are a mix of single and double doors, they are not automatic. We can ensure that there are ushers by the doors to help you.

Catering and break areas:

• The rooms have high ceilings and many large windows.

The Learning Set rooms:

• Learning set rooms will have capacities of up between 12-20 people.

All rooms can be accessed from the ground floor of the event. There will be staff on hand to support you in finding your Learning Set room.

For more information on accessibility at this venue, please speak to us at empowerment@stonewall.org.uk.

Facilities

All facilities will be clearly labelled on the day. Stonewall staff will also be able to direct you to all of these rooms.

The event will have a Wellbeing Room & a Multi-faith Room:

• These will be available from 9.00 – 17.00.
• There will be seating available.
• There will be materials inside the wellbeing room such as mental distractions, calming activities and useful information leaflets. 

Toilets

• Gender neutral toilets will be available.
• Accessible toilets, equipped with emergency alarms, will be available.

Accessibility Services

Adjustments are available upon request (if there is anything not on this list that you might require, please do not hesitate to get in contact and we will do our best to make this available). 

• Large print
• Coloured paper
• Induction loops 
• BSL Interpreter 
• Palantypist 
• Braille
• Free ticket for support worker
• Refrigerated storage
• Reserved seating
• Varied seating options

At Registration we will provide the following additional services:

Personal reserved signs for chairs will be available to collect at registration, on request.

Space for pronouns will be available on your delegate lanyard.

We can provide Early Bird registration (on request) for those who find the registration process inaccessible. More information about registration will be provided at a later date. This will be followed by a short tour of the venue.

There will be staff available during the main registration to support delegates.

Catering

Catering will be clearly labelled. Please do let us know of any dietary requirements or food/drink allergies you have in advance. Upon request, vegetarian, vegan, Halal, Kosher, nut free and gluten-free food will be available. We will ensure that catering requests are accommodated, so please provide us with as much information as possible when applying to join the programme.

There are lowered surfaces/appliances for wheelchair users to make tea/coffee in break spaces.

For assistance/guide dogs, please provide a water bowl. A toilet area for dogs is not available at the venue.

Staff support

Stonewall staff will be wearing brightly coloured lanyards so they can be identified easily. Stonewall staff will be available to support with any access needs during the programme.

Venue staff have received disability awareness training and the venue has undertaken an accessibility audit.

Security

To ensure the safety of all delegates, everyone must bring a form of ID and a copy of their joining instructions with them in order to access the event. We accept a variety of forms of ID including government issued photo ID, bank cards or a pass from your organisation. If you have any concerns about the above, or if there’s anything we can do to make the security check process easier for you, please get in touch.

COVID-19 Safety

We know that COVID-19 has hit our community disproportionately and that we all experience different levels of risk relating to our personal circumstances. As a community it’s important that we do all that we can to ensure everyone feels as safe as they can during this event.

These are the steps we are taking to minimize risk relating to COVID during this event:

We asking that staff and delegates take a lateral flow test before attending the event and not to attend if this is positive.

Ventilation: the venue is equipped with a ventilation system to keep fresh air circulated. We will also have windows open throughout the event. 

Hand sanitiser will be available throughout venue.

If you are travelling to the venue using public transport, please wear a face covering during your journey 

Please maintain social distancing of at least 1m while moving through the venue.

Please use your own personal equipment, or that provided to you – and try not to share equipment with other delegates. 

Unless exempt, we encourage mask wearing as often as comfortable, but particularly when moving throughout the venue. 

Regularly wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds. Use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available.

Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Put used tissues in the bin immediately and wash your hands. If you do not have a tissue, cough or sneeze into the crook of your elbow, rather than your hands.

If you have a positive Lateral Flow or PCR test, or any COVID symptoms please do not attend this event. Get in touch with the team via empowerment@stonewall.org.uk and we will transfer your place to a future event. 

Further information

If you can't find what you need here, or you prefer information in a different format, please email empowerment@stonewall.org.uk or call us on +44 (0) 20 7593 1850 and we will do our best to answer.