Access Statement For Waitby School

Introduction

Waitby School is a luxury holiday cottage sited 1.5 miles from Kirkby Stephen; it has been designed to be as access friendly as possible, with one ground floor master bedroom with en-suite bathroom.
Pre-Arrival

• Kirkby Stephen train station and bus stop are 1.5 miles from Waitby School
• Guest who do not drive will need to either walk or get a taxi from the above
• There are good facilities and shops in Kirkby Stephen, including a Radar Toilet (at the back of Market Square) 

Arrival & Car Parking Facilities

• Waitby School has a level gravel car park for 4 cars adjacent to the entrance door
• The front entrance door and French windows are all level with the flag stone paths around the property; there is a 5cm step up between the gravel and the flag stone paths
• The back door has one step up to it 

Main Entrance & Reception

• Once through the front door the whole of the ground floor is level stone tiled or oak board floor
• There are double doors leading from the entrance lobby into the rest of the building

Public Areas - General (Internal)

• The main room is a level oak floor and is accessed by doors whose width can accommodate a wheelchair

Public Areas - WC

• Not Applicable

Restaurant / Dining Room, Bar & Lounges, Take Away & Cafe

• Not Applicable

Laundry

• Not Applicable

Shop

• Not Applicable

Treatment room/s

• Not Applicable

Leisure Facilities

• Not Applicable

Outdoor Facilities

• Not Applicable

Conference & Meeting Rooms, Banqueting, Clubs, Entertainment

• Not Applicable

Bedrooms

• The master bedroom is on the ground floor and can be accessed directly from outside using the level flagstone paths or from the main room; all doors can accommodate a wheel chair
• The floors of all the bedrooms are oak boards and are well lit with lights that can dim
• There is a king size double bed
• There is space to manoeuvre a wheel chair adjacent to the bed
• The wardrobe is not full height, therefore making it usable by the occupant of a wheel chair
• The other two bedrooms have to be accessed by stairs from either the kitchen or main room; there are approximately 16 stairs to each case, but both staircases have good handrails. One upstairs bedroom has a king size double bed and the other has 3 single beds, both upstairs bedrooms have well lit walk in wardrobes
• The bedding is pure cotton with non-allergenic pillows and pure cotton towels

Bathroom, Shower-room & WC [Ensuite or Shared]

• The master bedroom has an ensuite bathroom with bath and toilet. Again, this has been designed to be wide enough to accommodate standard wheel chair manoeuvres
• There is space for a wheel chair user to manoeuvre their chair to the toilet
• The basin is at wheel chair users’ height with elbow taps into a mixer unit, behind is a well lit mirror
• There are however, no disabled grab rails installed adjacent to the toilet
• The bath has a Jacuzzi and shower is at standard height, there are two grab handles to help with access in and out of the bath
• The other bathroom is upstairs and has a walk-in shower
• A small toilet is situated off the kitchen but is not suitable for wheel chair users
• All bathrooms and toilets are well lit with limestone tiled walls and floors and white bathroom fittings
• There are no hoist or other devices on site

Self-Catering Kitchen

• The kitchen is accessed from the main room on the same level
• The well equipped kitchen has a level stone tiled floor and there is space to manoeuvre a wheel chair
• The work surfaces and hob (the electric oven is below the hob) are at 75cm height 
• Adjacent to the work surface is a fridge freezer tower unit (bottom shelf of the fridge being at 76cm) the freezer unit is on the bottom.
• There is a dishwasher and washer dryer; these are standard floor mounted units.
• Most of the kitchen storage (crockery cutlery pots and pans) is either in the cupboard under the stairs or in cabinets under the work surface, making it accessible for wheel chair users
• There are a microwave electric oven and hob, all at 75cm from the floor
• There is very good lighting that can be dimmed from 13 low voltage spotlights of which 3 are directly over the work surface as well a further 2 over the hob for task lighting
• The hot and cold water come out of a mixer unit with normal taps into a deep stainless steel sink which is again at 75cm from the floor

Caravans, Holiday Homes & Twin Units

• Not Applicable

Touring Facilities (Holiday Parks)

• Not Applicable

Boats - Narrow Boat, Cruiser & Hotel Boat

• Not Applicable

Attractions (Displays, exhibits, rides etc.)

• Not Applicable

Grounds and Gardens

• The garden is fully enclosed and on one level
• The well drained surface is grass which is kept well cut
• An lockable outhouse for the storage of bikes and wheel chairs etc is accessed using a level flag stone path

Additional Information

• Fire alarms are situated in all rooms apart from the bathrooms and main room, they are linked so that if one is activated they will all sound
• A full instruction and help manual for the property is provided on your arrival

Sensory elements
There are a number of sensory elements to Waitby School, including surfaces, scents and sounds. Within the original school building, there are date carvings in the walls, original bricks and terracotta sink, as well as lime rendered walls, wood panelled walls and oak flooring. The wood burning stove creates a smell of wood smoke. Outside the building there are more carved plaques (some about five foot up), rough textured walls, dry stone walls, slate in the former boys’ toilets, grass, trees and even an original drainpipe kicked out of shape by generations of schoolchildren. Nearby fields have ponies and horses for stroking and the Settle Carlisle railway is very close by – you might be lucky enough to hear the distinctive sound of a steam engine.

Contact Information

• Address: Waitby School c/o Sondes Place Farm Dorking Surrey RH4 3EB
• Telephone: 01306740743
• Fax: 01306884147
• Minicom: Not Applicable
• Email: info@waitbyschool.com
• Website: www.waitbyschool.com
• Grid reference: N54:28:19 W2:20:10 
• Hours of operation: Not Applicable
• Emergency number: 999 or Cumbria Cottages 
• Local carers: Kirkby Stephen Health Centre 017683 71369
• Local equipment hire companies: British Red Cross, Kendal, 01539734289
• Local public transport numbers: See instruction and help manual
• Local accessible taxi numbers: See instruction and help manual

Future Plans

• None

We welcome your feedback to help us continuously improve if you have any comments please phone 01306740743 or email info@waitbyschool.com