Up-front information can be crucial when planning your arrangements for Greenbelt and so we've tried to answer some of the most frequently asked questions below. For more specific enquiries contact us.
Please also visit the Information Booth when you get onsite for uptodate information.
Click on a question below to visit the relevant section of the Accessibility FAQ page.
Ticketing
Can I get a free ticket for a Personal Care Assistant?
The accessibility of the site
How accessible is the festival village for someone with mobility issues?
How accessible is the campsite?
Are there accessible toilets on site?
Parking
Is there Disabled Parking available on site?
Do I need a blue/orange badge to make use of the facilities?
Camping
Are there disabled facilities in the early curfew fields?
Can I have a power supply next to my tent on the campsite?
Camping is a bit difficult - do you know of any suitable local accommodation?
Can I bring a generator to the campsite?
Facilities / help on site
What specific facilities are provided for visually impaired people?
What specific facilities are provided for deaf and hard-of-hearing people?
Do you have any advice for people with learning disabilities who will be at the festival?
Do you have any advice for people with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) who will be at the festival
Is there somewhere I can charge my powered wheelchair/scooters?
Can Greenbelt hire me a scooter?
Is there somewhere I can sit down and rest onsite?
What facilities are available in venues?
What if I can't stand for long periods?
Do you have an oxygen supply onsite?
Ticketing
Can I get a free ticket for a Personal Care Assistant?
If you require an assistant to enable you to attend the festival, then Greenbelt is happy to provide you with an extra ticket for them, free of charge. Please apply to the office when you book.
The accessibility of the site
The site is pretty big now, and it can be a fair trek from one end to the other. The main tented villages are located on each side of he Racetrack and both are roughly 100m wide and 225m end to end. The music stages and the indoor venues extend up from the top end of the village into the grandstand area, with the furthest venue about 200m away. However, this section of the site lies on a fairly serious slope, which can be more of a challenge than the distance!
The disabled camping area is sited to give priority access into the heart of the village areas.
How accessible is the festival village for someone with mobility issues?
Within the festival village on the Grandstand side, tarmac paths link-up many of the venues and the exclusion of all but essential operational and emergency vehicles make the roadways pretty quiet. Access to some parts of this part of the festival village is still across grass and whilst not much of this could be described as perfectly manicured lawns it is by and large fairly well maintained ground and generally not too rough. From this part of the tented village a long and fairly steep tarmac slope runs up to the top end of the grandstand. It can be negotiated by wheelchair, but a rest part way can be welcome depending on levels of stamina and strength! If preferable a longer, but gentler, route can be navigated by skirting around the external car-parks (from the ticket office gate to the Hall of Fame entrance).
The other part of the tented village (and the campsite areas) are pretty level but all on grass and lie on the other side of the Racetrack in what we call the centre course.
A number of festival venues are located within the grandstand itself and permanent structures and are all accessible by wheelchair. The grandstand has a number of lifts, but not all of them stop at all floors! The key ('glass') lifts, which reach all levels, are therefore reserved for disabled and pushchair use. Finding your way to some of the indoor venues can be challenging at the best of times, but doubly so if you need to avoid stairways - the on-site info packs will contain details on the best routes to use.
How accessible is the campsite?
The campsite is located in the centre of and to the side of the racetrack and is primarily comprised of fairly rough, but level grassland. The Disabled camping area is located in the inner racecourse section which provides quick access into the heart of the both parts of the festival village.
A network of tarmac, gravel and grass roadways allows easy vehicular access around the campsite, but for fire safety reasons all vehicles must be removed to the car parks once you've un-loaded. Click here to read more about the car parking options.
If you absolutely need your car to stay close to you on the campsite then contact us in advance but please appreciate that we cannot guarantee to accommodate this. In all other cases, we would request that, where cars can be driven by an able-bodied helper, they are parked in the main campsite car park.
To improve safety and easy access around the campsite a minimum of 3m between all tents was introduced in 2001. This has made navigation through the campsite much simpler and has reduced the risk of tripping over guy ropes etc.
Disabled toilet facilities are located in the disabled camping areas.
Are there accessible toilets on site?
There are some disabled toilets in the permanent racecourse buildings plus a number of accessible portaloos in the festival village; the Disabled Camping Areas; and various other places (a full list of locations will be included with the Greenbelt Accessibility Guide available from the Information Booth).
Please Note: the majority of the disabled toilets in the permanent racecourse buildings are now RADAR keyed - please bring your key with you!
Parking
Is there Disabled Parking available on site?
Disabled Parking for holders of blue permits is available adjacent to the Ticket Office at the main entrance to the Festival site.
In addition, very limited disabled parking is available at a few other points onsite. Contact us in advance to discuss this but please appreciate that we cannot guarantee to accommodate this. In all other cases, we would request that cars are parked for the weekend in either the main campsite car park or the disabled car park next to the ticket office.
On arrival please ask a Steward for directions to the car parks.
Do I need a blue/orange badge to make use of the facilities?
Generally, yes. Greenbelt is obviously not in a position to provide its own assessment procedures and so relies on the widely accepted badge system. Accordingly parking in the disabled car park is restricted to cars displaying up-to-date permits. Similarly on arrival, access to the disabled camping area will be much eased if you can display your badge clearly in the front window of your car.
If you do not have a badge, but feel that you do have a case for requiring access to the disabled parking and camping, please apply to access@greenbelt.org.uk well in advance of the festival - supporting evidence will usually be required. In these exceptional cases we may be able to issue you with a temporary Greenbelt Blue Badge.
Camping
1. Camping for disabled people
The main Disabled Camping Area is reserved for disabled people plus their immediate companions to ensure that the 'prime' space is available to those most in need of easy access etc. This is reserved for individuals and groups of up to 6 people including the disabled person. Space in this area must be pre-booked via disabledcamping@greenbelt.org.uk.
2. Camping with a large group of friends
We are aware that in addition to requiring good facilities and a close proximity to the festival village, many people with disabilities will want to camp with their able-bodied friends. To enable this we have a second disabled camping area that is reserved for pre-booked groups but is slightly further away from the festival village areas. To use this area your group must fit one of the following profiles:
- Up to 12 people including 1 disabled person.
- Up to 18 people including 2 disabled people.
- Up to 24 people including 3 disabled people.
Space in this areas must be pre-booked via disabledcamping@greenbelt.org.uk
If you are a group of primarily disabled people, please contact us via access@greenbelt.org.uk so that we can discuss how best to accommodate you.
3. Camping more generally
Disabled people with or without groups can also camp in the Early Curfew Fields area, and the main campsite.
NB: Larger groups will need to camp in the main campsite.
Are there disabled facilities in the early curfew fields?
There should be accessible porta-loos in the early curfew fields, but we don't currently know how many, or whereabouts. We will update this answer If we find out before the festival.
Can I have a power supply next to my tent on the campsite?
Only car battery power supply is permitted (and the battery needs to be removed from the car first!).
Camping is a bit difficult - do you know of any suitable local accommodation?
There are a number of websites that can help you find suitably accessible accommodation. Some like Visit Cotswolds & Severnvale and Accessible South specialise in accessible accommodation. Others like Where 2 Stay have special areas or search facilities that can help you find possible B&Bs and hotels.
Alternatively, one of the best sources of reasonably priced accessible rooms can be the 'motel' style chains. The following of which all have premises in Cheltenham or the surrounding area: Travel Inn / Travel Lodge / Premier Lodge / Hi Express
You can also call the Cheltenham Borough Council accommodation helpline on 01242 517110.
Can I bring a generator to the campsite?
For numerous safety reasons petrol generators are strongly discouraged on site. You should only bring a generator if it is essential for medical/other special needs, and pre-arranged with the Fire Safety Team at firesafety@greenbelt.org.uk prior to the festival. Once on site the use of a generator should be notified to the Fire Safety Team on 07929133601 and must be operated strictly in accordance with the generator safety policy, a copy of which can be found online at (document to be uploaded) or on site from the Fire Safety team. If you are intending to camp in one of the pre-booked disabled camping areas then you should then also inform disabledcamping@greenbelt.org.uk about the generator so that we can consider what this means to how/where you can camp as additional space will need to be left adjacent to the generator.
When you arrive you should contact the access team on site, so that they can ensure that you are appropriately sited, and the fire safety team know the location of the generator.
Facilities / help on site
What specific facilities are provided for visually impaired people?
Guide dogs are welcome throughout the festival site and venues (other dogs are restricted to the campsite - or more preferably not brought to site). Greenbelt actively discourages people to bring pets to the festival as it's just not a good environment for them. Permission to bring 'companion' dogs into the village area can be sought in advance in exceptional circumstances; applications should give reasons and supporting evidence.
In addition, Greenbelt works hard to provide Daily Diary information in advance in an appropriate electronic format to visually impaired people. To do this we have set up an email list of those needing these services, notifying all those on a list when information is available and giving them instructions of how and where to download it from. If you'd like to use this, email us here and we'll make sure you're included on the list.
Sorry, we are unable to offer touch tours of the performing arts pieces at the Festival because of the pressure on time we have on get-ins for such productions. Nor do we offer audio-described performances.
A VI tips and tricks file is available for download here containing some useful tips suggested be othere visiting the festival in the past.
What specific failities are provided for deaf and hard-of-hearing people?
More details can be found about our provision for the deaf and hard-of-hearing by clicking here.
Do you have any advice for people with learning disabilities who will be at the festival?
People with learning disabilities can ask for a free carer ticket if they need someone with them to help them. Click here for more details.
We have a camping area for people with disabilities, including people with a learning disability, which is near to the festival village. If you would like to use it click here for more details.
There is a quieter room for people with disabilities to relax in, with people in there who know about learning disabilities. Click here for more details.
Some worship and talks will ask people to work together in a group. Some of the worship may ask you to "share the peace" (shake hands with other people and say something like "peace be with you" to them), or to help each other to take a little bit of bread and wine for communion.
If you would not like to do these things, you do not have to.
If you need help to understand what to do, you can ask at the Information Booth, or ask one of the people in charge of the talk or worship before it starts, or a steward wearing a high-visibility jacket. We will do our best to help you if we can.
Do you have any advice for people with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) who will be at the festival?
People with an ASD can ask for a free carer ticket if they need someone with them to help them. Click here for more details.
We have a camping area for people with disabilities, including people with an ASD, which is near to the festival village. If you would like to use it click here for more details.
Flash photography and sudden loud music can happen anywhere on the festival site. Sound from the events can often be heard in the background all over the site. We can help you find the quietest areas, but you may wish to bring your own ear plugs or ear defenders with you if you find that background sound is a particular problem.
There is a quieter room for people with disabilities to relax in. Click here for more details.
Some worship and talks will ask people to work together in a group. Some of the worship may ask you to "share the peace" (shake hands with other people and say something like "peace be with you" to them), or to help each other to take a little bit of bread and wine for communion.
If you would not like to do these things, you do not have to.
If you need help to understand what to do, you can ask at the Information Booth, or ask one of the people in charge of the talk or worship before it starts, or a steward wearing a high-visibility jacket. We will do our best to help you if we can.
Is there somewhere I can charge my powered wheelchair/scooters?
Yes, we are pleased to be able to offer this service. To make use of this facility, please call the charging room approximately 10-15 minutes before you need access. The Information Booth will be able to provide you with both location and phone number.
Please bring any connectors etc with you and remember that whilst the room will be kept locked and a booking in and out procedure will operate. Greenbelt is unable to accept any liability for losses, so please ensure your insurance cover is sufficient. Please also remember to make arrangements for how you will get around whilst the unit is charging! We recommend that you bring a backup or manual chair.
Can Greenbelt hire me a scooter?
We've tried to offer this service before but with no success so we can't offer direct help on this.
However Cheltenham Shopmobility has been able to help in the past. To contact Cheltenham Shopmobility telephone 01242 255333.
Is there somewhere I can sit down and rest onsite?
Yes, we do operate a rest room for people with disabilities (see clicking here). This is run for us by the L'Arche community. For details of when and where it can be accessed, ask at the Information Booth onsite.
What facilities are available in venues?
A raised viewing area is available at the Mainstage. There is also an area allocated upstairs in Centaur.
In other venues, get there early and then liaise with Stewards and/or Venue Managers in regard to finding a suitable spot. Often* they can help by letting you in to a venue ahead of a queue, arranging an easily accessible place for you or, where possible, exempting you from the instruction to clear a venue between programme items. Stewards and Venue Managers are often able to assist with other specific requests so please feel free to ask!
*We can't guarantee that they can every time!
What if I can't stand for long periods?
A lot of things will require you to queue to get into at the Festival, so please bring a chair with you if you have difficulty standing for long periods of time.
Do you have an oxygen supply onsite?
Unfortunately, at the moment we do not have an oxygen supply onsite.
Can I get more information on site?
Yes. The Information Booth is generally the fount of all knowledge and will also have copies of a Greenbelt Accessibility Guide, which will include general info, a map of the site showing key features/facilities, routes to venues etc. Stewards will also often know the answer to specific queries (or be able to get in touch with someone who does!).
What if I have a problem on site?
Please don't wait until after the festival to tell us about a problem - if at all possible we'd like to be able to solve it for you this festival rather than next! Some problems may be instantly resolvable by a Steward or Venue Manager, alternatively you can ask either a Steward with a radio or the Information Booth to contact the Accessibility Team Leader or the Duty Operations Manager.
Accessibility Awareness is being introduced into the Steward and Venue Managers briefings, but even so they may not always know what your particular needs are; so please let them know, they'll be happy to help.
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