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The toilets, including access and baby changing facilities, are open and cleaned regularly with a one in and one out policy. Please follow signage, maintain social distancing and please queue 2 metres apart where possible.
Buggies and pushchairs will need to be left downstairs as they cannot be accommodated in the exhibition. Please ask a member of staff on arrival where they can be left.
The garden is open with outdoor seating available.
Lifts accessing the Art Gallery and Tudor House section on the first floor are available
Our shop will be open in line with our museum opening hours, and is stocked with a great selection of games, gifts and jewellery.
Our café will be open in line with our museum opening hours, serving hot and cold drinks and some light snacks. There’s some limited indoor seating in the café.
We want all our visitors to enjoy their visit. If you require extra assistance please take a look at our Accessibility information about facilities and layout. If you have any queries at all please email [email protected].
You can prepare for your visit to Discover Bucks with our digital social story.
Our main access from Church Street provides step free level access for wheelchair users. At the moment the glass doors at the main entrance are manual however there is always staff on hand who will see you approaching to assist.
Access from Pebble Lane leading to our museum garden does not provide level access as it slopes up and might not be suitable for wheelchair users due to Pebble Lane having a cobbled surface.
The museum has a number of portable ramps for special events when extra doors are opened such as access to the Learnings Zones and Georgian Room via the garden. Please contact us on [email protected] or ring 01296331441 to book.
Access to the café via the garden includes a step. If you’d like to take your food and drink to our outdoor seating areas, the suitable option is to exit the museum’s main entrance and walk left around to the garden.
All staircases include a handrail.
You will find a lift allocated on ground floor in Discover Bucks Gallery which takes you to the main gallery space upstairs. In the main gallery there is a stair lift to enter after Embroiderers Guild exhibition. There is another lift on ground floor to gain access to the Tudor Gallery on first floor, please ask a member of staff for assistance.
Outdoors:
Entering the museum from Pebble Lane takes visitors to our garden which has a gentle slope up with a handrail.
Indoors:
As visitors enter the Discover Bucks Gallery, there is a gentle slope up with handrails.
There is seating available in all galleries however not all benches have backrests.
The garden has a number of benches with backrests as well as chairs with a backrest and armrest in the outdoor café seating area.
The museum delivers Touch Tours for blind and visually impaired visitors, there is also some large print documents available in the Discover Bucks Galleries and there are audio guides available in the Georgian room. Where possible we can also print further documents in large print if you let us know in advance. For more information click on our Community Page.
Visitors who are unable to book tickets to our events and exhibitions via our website may also book tickets by calling 01296 331441.
If a visitor with autism needs a quiet space during their visit, please ask the visitor services staff if quieter areas of the museum are available.
If you need help booking tickets, please call us on 01296 331441 or email [email protected]
The majority of doors in the museum are already open with a door stopper. If you need to access any manual doors, please ask a staff member who will be happy to help.
Thanks to funds from Rectory Homes and the Heart of Bucks charity, visitors with specific access needs have new ways of exploring the museum.
For visually impaired visitors, an iPad can be booked out to magnify the artefacts in the galleries for a close-up look.
Easy read guides are available as you go around the galleries.
If mobility is an issue, we now have a range of walking and sitting aids, such as seated strollers.
‘T’-loop is available for those with hearing impairment. Ask at reception, switch to the t-loop setting on your hearing aid and carry the portable loop around with you.
Accessibility Backpacks
We also have a range of themed Accessibility Backpacks that can be borrowed for free from our front desk. Each backpack contains:
-A visual timetable chart and cards
-Emotions fan
-Ear defenders
-Torch
-Dark glasses
-Fidget toy
-Storybook
-Cuddly comfort toy
-A treasure box with something tactile to hold
-A scent cube
-A focus tool (such as a magnifier or frame)
The museum has a hearing loop available for hard of hearing visitors, please advise staff at reception or event organisers when booking. You will need to switch your hearing aid to a ‘T’ position. The museum also delivers tours in British Sign Language, for more information click on our Community page.
The video in the Discover Bucks Galleries includes subtitles.
Most of the museum is well lit, including the Main gallery on first floor however some gallery spaces such as the Discover Bucks Galleries have low ambient lighting to preserve the material on display.
Assistance Dogs Guide dogs, Hearing dogs and Assistance dogs including training assistance dogs are welcome in all areas of the museum, unlike other dogs, however they must be kept on a short lead.
Aylesbury Refill Discover Bucks Museum is part of the National Refill Campaign to reduce waste, therefore we are happy to refill any bottles or dog bowls with tap water.
The museum does not have a designated area for prayer, contemplation, or quiet space for ASD children or breast feeding, however with enough notice we will assist with your needs where possible. The museum has good relations with St Mary’s Church also on Church Street and the Aylesbury Ghausia Mosque which is a short 10 minutes walk on Havelock Street, HP20 2NX, both places provide good spaces for worship.
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Hear about our exhibitions, events and offers
Buckinghamshire County Museum Trust
Trading as Discover Bucks Museum
Church Street,
Aylesbury,
HP20 2QP
Registered Charity number 1153345
