We want Sidmouth Folk Festival to be inclusive, accessible and enjoyed by all. We are committed to improving the experience and information available for all and welcome your feedback on this journey.
We recognise that disabilities are not always visible. Everyone is welcome to be part of the Festival, regardless of their race, gender, sexuality, identity, age, ability or religion. We have a zero-tolerance policy for disrespectful, hurtful, or discriminatory behaviour of any nature. We strive to communicate and encourage everyone to follow our Safer Spaces Policy.
About the Festival
Sidmouth Folk Festival takes place across a wide range of venues, both indoors and outdoors throughout the Regency Town. Pavements throughout the town can get very busy. Weather conditions will affect the overall state of the ground at the main festival venues (Ham, Bulverton, Blackmore, and the Campsite).
Venue Resources
*NEW* Access videos now available on the Sidmouth Folk Festival YouTube channel.
Visit the Venues page for useful information and resources including:
Online map showing all venues, car parks, places to eat and other useful places in the town
Full detailed description of Festival venues & access
Chart showing Distances between Venues (or download a copy – PDF file)
Website: To make text larger:
On a PC: press and hold the control key and press + (the plus key) to enlarge the text. Use control and – (minus) to make it smaller again. You can also hold down control and use the scroll wheel on your mouse.
On a touchscreen: touch the screen with two fingers and move them apart from each other to zoom in.
If you would like any information in a different format please get in touch: access@sidmouthfolkfestival.co.uk.
ACCESSIBILITY
If you have any questions relating to accessibility please email access@sidmouthfolkfestival.co.uk.
We try to make the Festival as accommodating as possible to all people. Wheelchair access is available at most venues (see Venue Access Summary here) and our volunteer stewards are always ready to assist with any special requirements.
If special requirements exist, such as the positioning of a wheelchair, please let us know in advance. It is the ticket holder’s responsibility to contact the venue to make sure that their requirements are known. Venue stewards will do their best to accommodate all such requests.
Changing Places – the nearest to Sidmouth is Seaton Tesco. Find out more here.
Personal Assistant Ticket – Book Online
Personal Assistant Ticket
This is available to a ticket buying person requiring assistance to attend the festival.
Tickets can be booked online and in order to qualify you will need to provide the box office/door staff at the festival with one of the following when collecting your season tickets or using your e-tickets:
Front page of DLA / PIP award letter (no specific rate)
Front page of Attendance Allowance letter (no specific rate)
Evidence that registered severely sight impaired (blind)
Recognised Assistance Dog ID card
The qualifying documentation must be an original and current as of the dates of the festival.
All Personal Assistants should be aged 18+ years.
If special requirements exist, such as positioning of a wheelchair, it is the ticket holder’s responsibility to contact the venue management early to make sure that their requirements are known. Venue stewards will do their best to accommodate all such requests.
Please address any accessibility enquiries to access@sidmouthfolkfestival.co.uk.
Accessible Camping
Please email us to arrange camping in a more accessible area of the Campsite
Mobility Scooter
hire is available in Sidmouth: https://www.coastlinemobility.com/hire. Charging points are available at the Campsite.
Toilets
Details of venues facilities can be found here.
We have worked with Sam Vestey, who attends National Star College in Cheltenham, to rethink how disabled access signage looks across the Festival. Sam is campaigning to make the familiar disabled sign more inclusive for people with non-visible disabilities. The 21-year-old believes the wheelchair icon featured on blue badges and disabled parking bays is outdated.
He is promoting a new, more inclusive logo that was chosen following a competition in specialist colleges. It shows two able bodied people with a third person in a wheelchair and the wording, “Some disabilities are visible. Some are not. Take care of each other”.
“Only 7% of disabled people use a wheelchair. That means this logo isn’t relevant for the other 93% of people with disabilities. Surely, it’s time for a change,” says Sam. “It’s great that Sidmouth Folk Festival is using the new logo and promoting accessibility.”
Information for Blind and Visually Impaired People
If you require information emailed to you in Word format, please email access@sidmouthfolkfestival.co.uk before 26th July. If you require information in Braille or Audio described please contact us before 14th June to enable copies to be produced. They will be reserved for collection on arrival at the site Box Office.
Food & Drink
All Festival caterers ensure that their menus and service is accessible to all and cater for a range of food intolerances.
Lighting Production
There will be NO “Strobe lighting” at the festival. There will be flashing lights and sometimes lights shining directly on the audience.
Sign Language
We do not yet have hearing loops or British Sign Language available.
SAFEGUARDING
We expect everyone participating in our activities, to respect volunteers, and fellow visitors and participants.
We will not tolerate aggressive, discriminatory, disruptive, harassing or offensive behaviour.
If you witness or experience behaviour you are uncomfortable with, please speak to, or contact, a Festival Volunteer who will ensure that this is dealt with and followed up appropriately with the Festival Safeguarding team.
At the Festival we will actively promote the principle of consent regarding activities on-site at events, defining consent as “someone engaging in activities if they agree by choice, and they have the freedom and capacity to make that choice” and reiterating that consent can be revoked at any time.
Sidmouth Folk Festival is committed to the AIF Charter of Best Practice and Safer Spaces at Festivals campaign.