Accessibility

You are eligible to apply for a free ticket for a companion to accompany you if you have purchased your own ticket and can prove you are in receipt of any of the following:-

• Access Card with the +1 symbol (for companion ticket) and/or the Distance or Wheelchair symbol (for vehicle passes). https://www.accesscard.org.uk/
• A confirmation letter showing receipt of the “Daily Living” component (for companion tickets) and/or the “Getting Around” / “Mobility” component (for vehicle passes) of PIP or DLA.
• A confirmation letter showing receipt of Attendance Allowance.
• A confirmation letter showing receipt of Employment and Support Allowance.
• Both sides of your Blue Badge (for vehicle passes only).
• Proof of registration as severely sight impaired.
• Proof of diagnosis of being on the autistic spectrum.
• A letter from a doctor or other medical professional confirming you could not attend the festival alone (for companion ticket) and/or have a disability or medical condition that requires you to use the accessible campsite or car park (for vehicle passes).
• If you are a member of Wales wide initiative HYNT Scheme. If you live in Wales, you may want to consider joining the HYNT scheme. Find out more about this free scheme in Wales.

To book your companion ticket, please book your own ticket online or by phone. You can send this information to us in advance or bring proof with you and a photo ID when collecting your tickets at the festival.

If you have questions the most effective way of contacting us is via info@beyondtheborder.com.  You may also leave a voice message on 02921 660501 but please be aware this line is not staffed continuously and there may be a delay in getting back to you.

We will be working to ensure that, through from booking your ticket to the leaving the site, the experience will be the most accessible Beyond the Border festival ever.

• Entrance into the festival is on a main road. The car parks and festival site are on grass. Live-in vehicle access is on a main route and on a tarmac area. The festival field is a grass field with some hilly terrain. There are some gravel and tarmac paths that lead to other area of Dinefwr including Newton House, Woodlands and Castle. Please be aware in wet conditions the ground can become muddy – especially in Wales!
• The festival entrance is at the top of a hill gradient next to the main road, with a gradual decline to the main festival marquee areas. The campsite is located at the bottom gradient.

While most of the festival field is on the flat, the natural hilly gradients in the area may present a barrier for people who use manual wheelchairs and those with serious mobility impairments. Electric wheelchairs can tackle most areas, but the ground can be quite uneven in places.

Car Parking and Drop Off point

• We will be providing designated accessible car parking spaces. This is next to the entrance of the Festival Field. You can arrive and leave during the weekend and regain access anytime if you are staying offsite locally.
• There will be a drop off point near the front of the festival if you want to drop off anyone at the front of the festival gate.
• If you need support getting from the car park to the campsite and festival field, please let us know in advance.

Buggy support

We will have limited use of our Buggy to transport luggage / camping equipment. We ask where possible can you let us know in advance if you will need assistance and if you’d like use of the Buggy. We will also have Access Stewards to help carry belonging to the campsite if needed. Please note we will not be able to transport people with the buggy.

If you would like to use our Buggy please complete the form below, and let us know your estimated time of arrival and departure so we can help manage busier times.

https://forms.gle/QFfkwS2HAQALGyrT9

• The campsite is located at the bottom of the festival field and is a 5 minute walk from the entrance. There is a gradual incline from the campsite to the main festival site.

• Because of the terrain of the campsite, you may want to consider staying on the live-in vehicles site if you have your own live-in vehicle or look at alternative accommodation near to the festival. Our Local Accommodation page has website recommendations.

• We will have some Access Assistants helping at the festival this year, please let us know in advance if you need assistance getting from the festival site entrance to the campsite.

• There will be accessible toilets around the site. Unfortunately we are unable to provide accessible showers.

• If you need a 24-hr covered charging point for power chair batteries, please let us know in advance.

• The Live-In Vehicles site is separate to the campsite and is accessible by a main road. This will be a 5 – 10 minute walk from the main festival entrance. Please be aware there are no power or water hook-ups for vehicles.

• We will be providing accessible toilets in the live-in vehicle site. There will be showers but again we are unfortunately able to provide accessible showers.

• We will have some Access Assistants helping at the festival this year, please let us know in advance if you need assistance getting from the festival site entrance to the campsite.

• We will be providing signage throughout the festival site and campsite.

• We will be providing information on the most accessible routes through the festival site and campsite.
If you need to charge your mobility scooter, please let us know in advance.

• We will be providing designated storage for medicine.

• Most venues are on the main festival site which is on grass, however some performances will be offsite, such as story walks, the woodlands and castle. Some of these journeys are not easily accessible for wheelchair users or those with poor mobility. We will signpost on our festival programme what story walks and performances are accessible for wheelchairs but please do talk to us about your needs so we can best advise.

While most of the festival field is on the flat, the natural hilly gradients in the area may present a barrier for people who use manual wheelchairs and those with serious mobility impairments. Electric wheelchairs can tackle most areas but the ground is quite uneven in places.

Performances:

• We plan to have more BSL than ever before.

• We will be providing wheelchair spaces within all our venues, which are marquees and tents.

• We recommend that all storytelling events are suitable for those with visual impairments as most shows do not rely on props or set designs.

• We will be encouraging all our storytellers to introduce embedded audio descriptions into their performance or providing audio describers.

Food and Catering

– Beyond the Border expects to have no more than 3000 people on its festival site across the weekend in 2023.
– There will be a variety of stall traders and bar facilities on site, selling food for all tastes and dietary requirements.
– Based on our past experience queues are known not to be very long.

Trained Staff:

• Specific staff, stewards and volunteers will be given disability training.

• We will have dedicated Access Assistants who will support disabled audiences. If you need support please let us know in advance.

• We are working with our new box office partner Taliesin Arts Centre to make the process of booking a ticket is as accessible as possible.

Access to information:

• We will be providing information in a number of formats to ensure that information about the festival and site is as accessible as possible.

• We can provide programmes and festival maps in a large print on request

• We can provide an audio programme for the festival which will be available online.

• The Festival Map and programme information will be available at least one month before the festival opens.

At Newton House, Dinefwr there are:

Adapted toilets in house and visitor reception

The grounds is partly accessible with a long level broadwalk to mill pond.

Newton House has ramped access by the entrance and a new lift to allow wheelchair useers access to the first floor.

Wheelchairs are available at the NT property for Newton House but these must be booked in advance. Please contact NT Dinefwr on 01558824512

• Some of these venues are not easily accessible for wheelchair users or those with poor mobility. We will signpost on our festival programme what story walks and performances are accessible for wheelchair and those with poor mobility.

The grounds is partly accessible with a long level broadwalk to mill pond.

– We do not allow parking next to your tent. We can ensure your vehicle is parked in our designated accessible car parking space and can help with transferring your belongings. Please let us know in advance if you need help transferring your belongings from the site entrance to the campsite.

– With our Live-In Vehicle site, you can park a vehicle next to your live-in vehicle as this is a separate campsite to the main campsite on the festival field.

– We do not provide a queue jump system for entering the festival or for catering stalls. We anticipate busy times being between 11am-6pm, 10am-2pm on Saturday and Sunday.

– We do not provide or hire out buggy’s or wheelchairs at the festival. We can help carry your belongings when you arrive with portable trucks and help transport you to the campsite space and leaving the event.

Please let us know in advance if you need help transferring your belongings from the site entrance to the campsite.