Accessibility

YSP has an ongoing commitment to make our buildings, programme, and experiences services as accessible and inclusive as possible for our visitors, both online and in person. We are constantly learning and making improvements, and value feedback and suggestions.

Our staff are aware of the diversity of visitors’ access requirements and are here to support you. Get in touch if you have any specific queries about accessibility or would like more information to support your visit.

Some outdoor areas of the Park can be difficult to access due to uneven terrain and weather-related changes. Our friendly team at the YSP Centre Information Desk can advise on suggested routes for wheelchair and mobility scooter users. Come and say ‘hello’ on your arrival.

Download our detailed Accessibility Guide.

Contact our Visitor Experience team

01924 832631

GalleryTeam@ysp.org.uk

5 Stars
Incredibly accessible for those with needs like myself. Good cafes and toilet facilities...it’s how accessible this whole space is, with reduced entrance fees for those not working and/or on benefits! Thank you YSP!!!

Plan your visit

Ticketing

Everyone who visits YSP needs an entry ticket, which can be booked online or bought on arrival. Under 18s visit YSP for free. See the full ticket pricing breakdown here.

Parking is FREE.

We encourage booking in advance to avoid disappointment, as we do sell out frequently.

Free Entry for companions

Free admission tickets are available to Essential Companions, carers, and MAX Card holders.

Tickets can be booked via our website or issued on arrival at YSP at either the main entrance or at The Weston.

Mobility Scooter Hire

We have four off-road mobility scooters, which are available to hire free of charge during your visit. As we have a limited number of scooters, we recommend getting in touch to reserve one before you visit, as at busy times they are very popular.

Scooters are hired from the main visitor centre. A member of our team will show you how to use the scooter and suggest tips on where to go. Scooters can travel on most outdoor surfaces, but our team will advise if there are any areas which are unsuitable due to weather and seasonal conditions when you collect your scooter.

Off-road scooters are not permitted inside the galleries to protect the artwork on display. Manual wheelchairs are available to borrow inside the galleries for those who need them.

To reserve a scooter please call 01924 832631 or email galleryteam@ysp.org.uk.

Two women walking dogs on leads past a tall white human-shaped sculpture

A family of 2 adults and 2 children building sculptures out of typers and plastic pipes. One of the adults is using a tramper mobility scooter.

Assistance dogs

Assistance dogs are welcome throughout the park including our indoor cafes, restaurants, shops, and galleries. Owners are expected to take responsibility for their assistance animal throughout their visit. To protect our collections and for everyone’s comfort and safety, assistance dogs must always remain on leads. Please note that livestock graze the fields of the Country Park and sections around the lake.

Drinking water for animals is available at all our cafés, Visitor Centre and outside the Underground Gallery.

Find out more about bringing your dog to YSP.

Parking

Priority parking for Blue Badge holders is available in the main car park next to the Visitor YSP Centre, with 11 spaces available. The furthest Blue Badge space is approximately 35m from the entrance to the visitor centre. You do not need to book these in advance, please park in your preferred space on arrival. The Blue Badge spaces are on tarmac, with dropped curbs to access the Walk of Art and YSP Centre. This is a level surface.

Blue Badge parking is also available at The Weston, with 8 spaces available approximately 34m from the main entrance to the building. These spaces are on self-binding gravel, leading onto the path at Walk of Art 2, an embossed metal walkway. The general parking spaces nearest to the main doors are on loose hardcore and may not be suitable for all Blue Badge holders.

A wheelchair user painting onto a piece of suspended fabric outdoors.

A man in an orange coat doing sign language outdoors

A pair of visitors using tramper mobility scooters.

During your visit

Entrances

There are two entrances to YSP – one located at the main visitor centre and one at The Weston. Access to YSP Learning is restricted and is available by appointment only. Please let us know if you require access to this car park.

You are welcome to drive or walk between entrances, just keep hold of your ticket as you may be asked to show this when entering the Park from the main entrance of from The Weston. On the day of your visit, you can exit/re-enter the Park as many times as you like. Just show your tickets on arrival each time.

Arrival

On arrival via the main entrance, signs will direct you to the ticket and admissions shelter. A member of the team will greet you outside this wooden shelter and approach your vehicle from the left. They will ask if you have booked tickets in advance or if you would like to purchase tickets for that day. After the tickets have been checked or issued, you will be directed to the car park.

If you are arriving at The Weston, drive into the car park and make your way inside the building. Team members are located in the restaurant, shop and gallery. To enter the grounds and explore the sculptures and galleries, exit the building by the door next to the gallery and follow the short path to the ticket and admissions shelter. A team member will greet you and will check pre-booked tickets or be able to sell tickets there and then.

Seating

There are benches throughout our outdoor areas if you need to take a break during your visit. The majority of these are located in the areas near the Underground Gallery, Bothy Gallery, Visitor Centre, and lakeside paths. Seating can also be found in all our galleries, Visitor Centre concourse and cafés.

Picnic benches can be found outside YSP Learning and in the Country Park, near to the Visitor Centre. These have fixed seating and include some wheelchair accessible benches.

Toilets

We have accessible toilets for independent use and baby changing facilities at the Visitor Centre, YSP Learning and The Weston.

The YSP Learning building also features a Changing Places toilet which is accessible for a wheelchair user and carer and accessed via a radar key. Please ask the team at the YSP Learning Cafe if you require access during your visit.

All gender toilet cubicles are located in the toilets next to the Bothy Gallery and at The Weston. The all gender toilet next to the Bothy Gallery is also an accessible toilet with baby changing facilities.

Food and drink

Our cafés and restaurant have flexible seating, with loose tables and chairs, both indoors and outdoors. Our team are available to assist you in finding a suitable place to sit. Please speak to the team on arrival.

The Kitchen Café, Coffee Shop and Learning Café feature counters where our team will serve you. The Weston Restaurant provides full table service.

Advance table bookings can be made at The Weston using our online booking platform, via email at weston-restaurant@ysp.org.uk or phone 01924 930004. Wheelchair seating options are available.

Our menus are available in large print format, with full allergy information available. If you have any questions about our menus, please contact us at GalleryTeam@ysp.org.uk / 01924 832631

Wheelchair and physical access

YSP is a multi-venue site, with a mixture of modern and heritage buildings, and open parkland. General information about our galleries and outdoor spaces can be found below. For more detailed information about physical access in each of our spaces, please visit our Accessibility Guide.

For exhibition specific access information, please visit our exhibition pages.

YSP Visitor Centre

YSP Visitor Centre is home to our Information Desk, Quiet Room, YSP Shop, cafés, hireable spaces, and Upper Space exhibition space. YSP Visitor Centre has flat access throughout, with lift access to the Café, Upper Space and Underground Gallery. There are toilets and baby change facilities, including accessible toilets, located on both floors.

A visitor information shelter is located on the exterior of the building next to the Blue Badge parking. Here you can pick up a map and find out what’s on. You can also receive lots of ideas and suggestions or where to go and what to do by visiting the Information Desk inside the Visitor Centre.

Underground Gallery

The Underground Gallery is home to our headline exhibitions and hands-on, interactive gallery. It is accessed by automatic doors and has flat access throughout. The gallery layout changes on an exhibition basis, visit our Exhibitions pages for more information.

There are no toilet facilities in the Underground Gallery, the nearest can be found at the Visitor Centre and Bothy, both a short distance from the gallery.

Wooden benches are available at each end of the concourse, and stools can be found in all gallery spaces.

A couple with a dog on a lead, walking towards the YSP Visitor Centre, a modern angular building, with a balcony.

A group of walkers in winter coats walking outside a glass wall outside the Underground Gallery.

YSP Learning

YSP Learning is home to a café, workshop spaces, offices, and our Changing Places toilet. There is flat access to the cafe, toilets, and Garden Studio, with stairs and lift access to the Hayloft Studio and YSP offices on the second floor.

The YSP Learning Café is dog friendly, with designated areas for visitors with dogs and those who would prefer to eat in a dog-free area. Assistance dogs are welcome throughout the café. The café is currently open on weekends, school, and Bank Holidays.

Toilet facilities can be found on the ground floor, including an accessible toilet and Changing Places toilet accessed by RADAR key. Please speak to a member of the team if you need access to this during your visit.

Chapel

The Chapel is a converted 18th-century chapel which now houses our temporary exhibition programme. It is an approximately 10-minute walk from the main Visitor Centre through the country park, down a steep sloping hill.

Access to the Chapel is via steps or a grassed ramp at the main entrance. The ground floor has flat access throughout, with stone flagstones and a metal grate running the length of the gallery. The upper balcony is accessed by a steep, sharply turning staircase which may not be suitable to visitors with mobility issues.

There is bench seating available on the ground floor, and pew seating on the balcony. There are no public toilet facilities at the Chapel.

The exterior of the YSP Learning building and cafe.

An 18th century chapel building, with a round tower.

The Weston

The Weston is open Tuesday–Sunday and Bank Holidays. It is home to a gallery, restaurant, and shop, which are all free to enter without purchasing a YSP visitor ticket.

The Weston has smooth concrete flooring throughout, with a slight downhill gradient into the restaurant. There are power assisted doors at the front entrance, and manual doors to the rear entrance lobby and gallery.

The restaurant has loose, movable seating indoors and outdoors, and fixed bench seating in the lobby. At busy times there may be a wait to be seated in the restaurant. There is a seating area which can be used while you’re waiting. If this is not accessible for you, please speak to a member of staff.

The toilets, including accessible cubicles and baby change facilities, are separate cubicles with shared hand-washing facilities.

Outdoors

Our outdoor spaces include parkland, formal gardens, lakeside paths and wooded areas, with some steep gradients, particularly in the Country Park. The majority of the paths are on crushed and compacted stone aggregate, with all pathways a minimum of 1m wide.

Many of our outdoor areas are affected by seasonal weather conditions, and in wet weather can become very muddy and inaccessible for mobility scooters, wheelchairs, and people with limited mobility. Speak to our friendly team at the Information Desk for our tips on the best accessible routes during your visit.

People walk across the grass in the country park towards a Henry Moore sculpture.

Visual and Auditory Access

Large print and braille interpretation can be found in our galleries. Where possible, handling objects relating to the exhibitions will also be available. Visit our exhibitions pages for specific access information relating to the changing displays.

We subtitle all audio-visual content in our exhibitions and online. Where possible we also include BSL (British Sign Language) interpretation.

We host at least one guided exhibition tour and one guided art outdoors tour with BSL interpretation each year. Visit our What’s On listings for the latest information on BSL interpreted events.

Sensory Access

To help make your visit more comfortable, ear defenders (in both child and adult sizes) are available to borrow from the Information Desk.

Our Quiet Room, located just off the concourse in the Visitor Centre, is a quiet space for anyone who needs to take a bit of time out. There are books and sensory toys available, and a screen showing films of our current exhibitions. This screen does not have sound and can be turned off completely if required, just ask at the Information Desk.

Look out for Talking and Drawing Together cards in our indoor gallery spaces to help you explore the exhibitions (you can also download these in advance). In the Underground Gallery, pick up a sensory basket and visit the Project Space to enjoy a range of books, cushions and creative toys based on the exhibitions.

The food served in our cafés and restaurant is freshly prepared and cooked onsite. On occasion, this can create smells which are experienced inside the Visitor Centre and The Weston buildings. Smells vary due to changing menus.

Our toilets have electric hand dryers, which can create loud noises. There are enclosed cubicle accessible toilets located at the Visitor Centre, Bothy and Learning Centre for anyone who would prefer to control the hand dryers themselves.

Some of our exhibitions may feature lights, sound or smells. Visit our exhibitions pages for specific access information relating to the changing displays.

Accessible Events

Explore our accessible events below. These include BSL interpreted tours and specialist sessions. For more information about general event accessibility, visit our What’s On pages.