Access Statement

The Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre is committed to doing its best to create a welcoming space where everyone can enjoy the displays and resources on offer, in the Centre, on the website, and at events. Please contact our team ahead of your visit if you have any queries or requests. 

Website:

We are in the process of assessing our website against WCAG 2.2 criteria, to see where improvements can be made. 

The front entrance to the Coast Centre has a 2 storey arched framework, with wooden steps leading to a glass porch on the top floor. Beneath this is the entrance to a fossil shop. There is a large banner across the framework saying: Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre. Free entry upstairs.
Front entrance

Centre:

  • We are on the first floor of the building (upstairs, above the ground level). There are steep steps at the front of the building, and ramp access at the side. Once inside, the Centre is level and spacious for wheelchair and pushchair access. Some users of larger motorised wheelchairs may find access more limited.
  • Lighting is provided by strip lights and LED spotlights, supplemented by additional lights within our display cabinets. 
  • Assistance dogs are welcome in the Centre.
  • Our small theatre room can have low lighting or strip lighting, on request.

    A straight ramp is positioned to the side of the main building.
    Side access ramp
  • The theatre film has subtitles, and wherever possible all other screens have subtitles and sound.
  • No music is played within the Centre, but occasional announcements are sounded, and one of our donation boxes makes a loud dinosaur roar. These can be turned off on request.
  • The theatre room can be used as a quiet space – please ask at our main desk.
  • We have lots of tactile handling specimens in the Centre, available for anyone, all the time.
  • There are stools and benches in both rooms. 
  • Currently there is no hearing loop or large print versions of display labels. This is something we are looking to improve.

    There are a number of fossils on display around the walls of the room, in addition to some plinth displays.
    Inside the Centre
  • The Centre itself has no toilet facilities, but public facilities, including disabled, can be found in a separate building immediately to the rear. The disabled toilet is available 24/7, without need of a radar key to unlock it.
  • A social story for visits to the Centre or events can be sent on request. 
  • A number of our volunteers and staff have undertaken training for assisting visitors with visual impairments. Staff have also completed EDI training, and training for working with visitors with autism. 

Events: 

Most of our events take place on the beach, which is unpredictable with the terrain changing daily. Fossil hunting and seashore safaris involve climbing or walking over potentially wobbly boulders, whereas beach cleans and nurdle hunts can be on the flatter sand and gravel. Group sizes can vary too, with larger numbers predicted at peak times and school holidays. If you would like to discuss whether an event might be suitable, or how we can adjust it, please contact us. A number of our volunteers and staff have undertaken training for assisting visitors with visual impairments on the beach. Staff have also completed EDI training, and training for working with visitors with autism. Below are images of the typical terrain for each event:

Large uneven boulders strewn across the beach, with finer gravel in between.
Fossil hunting terrain
The rockpooling terrain has pebbles and boulders covered in seaweed, with large areas of shallow water.
Seashore safari terrain
People are crouched on the ground picking up pea-sized nurdles.
Beach clean and Nurdle hunt terrain

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Centre welcomes feedback on how we can improve access. You can contact us via email, phone, or post: 

info@charmouth.org

01297 560772

Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre, Lower Sea Lane, Charmouth, Dorset, DT6 6LR