6 Accessible Events To Kick Start Your Year
January 2025
Access My Events would like to wish everyone a very Happy New Year! It’s our first blog post for the start of January 2025, and we’re excited to share with you 6 accessible events to kick-start your year with some fun for the whole family to enjoy.
1) Beauty and the Beast
The Richmond Theatre
The Richmond Theatre brings you a spectacular production for all the family with a relaxed performance. The show is running until the 5th of January. To book your tickets, follow the link Beauty and the Beast - Relaxed Performance Tickets | Richmond Theatre in Greater London | ATG Tickets
Accessibility
The venue has level access to the stalls with staff to assist if needed. If you require a transfer seat these are available but it’s advisable to inform staff before booking.
An accessible toilet is available near the stalls located at the accessible entrance. The venue has worked with AccessAble to make it easier for disabled visitors to plan their trip. To see the full guide of accessible facilities available, follow the link Richmond Theatre | AccessAble.
2) Wheelchair Ice Skating
Summerset House
Have you tried Ice Skating in your wheelchair? Somerset House run sessions for wheelchair users, which run until the 5th of January 2025. When making a booking, please ensure that you inform them that you will be coming in your wheelchair to make sure that staff will be there to assist you on the ice if needed. You can also book a skate- mate, which is an extra cost on top of the price of your ticket.
To find out more, follow the link Somerset House Wheelchair Ice Skating, to book your tickets or call them on 0333 320 2836. You can also email them at visitor@somersethouse.org.uk If you are disabled you will pay for one ticket and get one free for your PA.
Accessibility
Disabled parking - The venue has on-street disabled parking bays on Wellington Street and Temple Place It’s best to arrive early to secure your space.
Assistance dogs – are allowed throughout the venue
Manual wheelchairs – These are available on-site for disabled visitors and can be booked in advance. Email visitor@somersethouse.org.uk
Tickets - Disabled visitors can purchase tickets at concession rates and get a companion ticket free. To see a full list of accessible facilities, follow the link Accessibility | Somerset House
3) The Lion King
Lyceum Theare London
If you are looking for something to keep your children entertained, the Lyceum Theatre brings you the award-winning musical of Disney’s, Lion King. It features outstanding costumes and special effects. The show is very popular and is running until October 2025. To purchase your tickets, follow the link Disney's The Lion King Tickets and Dates
Accessibility
The accessibility of the venue is not great but they do have lifts to all floors and blue badge parking spaces close to the theatre. Car parking can be booked in advance by calling 0800 243 348. It’s best to contact the venue to check before attending.
They offer audio-described, signed and captioned performances. Deaf and disabled can join their membership access scheme to enable you to book accessible seating and get concessions.
4) The English National Ballet
Nutcracker 9th January 2025 at 1.30pm
If you enjoy ballet, the English National Ballet hosts relaxed performances and events throughout the year. They offer access to quiet spaces during the show with lights and sounds lowered for people with sensory needs. Follow the link to book your tickets Access Events - English National Ballethttps://www.ballet.org.uk/event/access-events/#venue-dates.
Accessibility
The London Coliseum runs an access scheme, which offers disabled visitors half price on tickets for most of their shows. You need to sign up and register. Follow the link to complete the form Join our Access Scheme | English National Opera.
If you have your own wheelchair or scooter the venue offers wheelchair spaces
Transfer seats for those individuals who can get out of their wheelchair
Accessible toilets and two lifts are available on-site
Please note, wheelchair spaces and transfer seats need to be booked by contacting the box office on 020 7845 9300.
Parking - Limited accessible parking is available but the spaces do go quickly.
To see a full list of accessibility information, follow the link Access at the London Coliseum | London Coliseum
5) Science Museum
Early Birds 11th January - 8am – 11am
The Science Museum hosts early birds, an event dedicated to those with sensory needs. It runs on selected dates across the year. The event is free to attend but booking is required. To find out more, follow the link Early Birds | Science Museum.
Accessibility
The museum offers carer tickets for some of their paid activities and exhibitions. In order to get one you have to email info@sciencemuseumgroup.ac.uk with your order number for the standard ticket, or you can call their contact centre on 0330 058 0058 to book.
The venue has a limited number of disabled parking bays available. Their lifts have audio announcements and braille labels on the buttons.
For more detailed information on the venues accessibility, follow the link Science Museum Accessibility
6) Kindred Private Members Club
15th January 6pm – 9pm
Queen Caroline Street, London W6
If you are looking to plan your next trip abroad, join London Organic PR as they host an evening dedicated to making travel accessible for everyone. The event will include practical tips and strategies with information on accessible transportation options, accessible accommodation and resources to ensure you have a smooth and enjoyable journey. The event will have speakers who will share their experiences and advice on navigating the challenges that come with travelling.
Accessibility
The venue is accessible and offers the following facilities:
- A lift
- Accessible toilet
- Offer water bowls for assistance dogs
- When you have purchased a standard ticket, please email bookings@wearekindred.com to request a free carer ticket
To see the full list of facilities, follow the link https://www.accesscard.online/find-a-provider/kindred/
We look forward to continuing our work and making a difference for deaf and disabled people accessing events. Please keep an eye out on our website and social media channels for the latest developments and updates as we continue to build partnerships with as many businesses as possible. To find out how we can help your organisation be more inclusive, please get in touch with us by phone or email.
Happy Holidays And Seasons Greetings!
December 2024 - January 2025
We would like to wish all our connections and partners, Happy Holidays and Seasons Greetings!
Thank you to everyone who has supported us in 2024. We look forward to continuing our work in 2025 and making a difference for deaf and disabled people accessing events.
Please keep an eye out on our website and social media channels for the latest developments and updates as we continue to build partnerships with as many businesses as possible who are interested in making their events accessible and inclusive.
Each year that comes round it's always been a challenge in getting the business off the ground and we hope 2025, will be the year that see's Access My Events launch into a successful business.
Advocating For People Living With Chronic Illness
18th November 2024
In the latest episode of My Voice Podcast, we were joined by Shabnam Rakhiba, who is a mentor and life coach for people with chronic illnesses.
Together with, co-host Raya Al Jadir, we spoke to Shabnam about her work, her lived experience of chronic illness and how it led her to start her own business, supporting and advocating for people in this community.
Follow the link to listen on Spotify https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/myvoicepodcast/episodes/Advocating-For-People-Living-With-Chronic-Illness-e2r1kmh
If you would like to get in contact with Shabnam you can connect with her on LinkedIn, or email Shabnam@chronicwellenesslounge.com.
Networking Event For Disabled Founders
2nd October 2024 House of Lords
It was a privilege to be invited to the House of Lords on the 2nd of October for a networking lunch, for disabled founders, hosted by Small Business Britain, in partnership with Lloyds Bank.
It was good to hear about the updates on the Lilac Review since it was launched. We also heard from a disabled founder and their journey into business and entrepreneurship.
It was a great opportunity to meet and connect with other businesses too.
Disability In The World Of Sport And Literature
23rd September 2024
In this episode of My Voice podcast, Zubee and co-host, Raya, had the pleasure of speaking to Danielle Brown MBE who is a 2 x gold medal winner paralympic champion in Archery, keynote speaker award-winning author and entrepreneur.
As the Paralympics have come to an end we thought it will be great to hear from a former Paralympian who’s competed at professional level and been through the challenges to winning gold.
She’s now retired from the sport but continues to help others through her work, providing training and consultancy to organisations in inclusion. We spoke to her about her journey and what inspired her to get into sport to becoming a children's author.
Follow the link to listen on Spotify: Disability In The World Of Sport And Literature
You can follow Danielle on Facebook, X, Instagram and LinkedIn
Disability And AI Revolutionising The Way We Work
14th September 2024
In the latest episode of My Voice podcast, our founder, Zubee and co-host Raya speak to Kiran, who is a disabled student studying computer science, specialising in AI and Robotics at the University of Hertfordshire.
She talks to us about her career and what interested her in learning about AI and the challenges she faced while studying as well as her achievements and future plans.
Listen now on Spotify by following the link.
My Voice Podcast Revolutionising The Way We Work
SBS London Regional Business Bootcamp
13th May 2024 250 Bishopsgate
On the 13th of May we attended the SBS Regional Business Bootcamp in London organised by Theo and the SBS team. We enjoyed hearing presentations from Natwest on understanding your customer, Google Digital Garage on understanding Google analytics and SBS winner Fran on Instagram and influencers.
The SBS team had organised a special guest appearance from #SBS creator Theo Paphitiis who was interviewed by James Holian, Natwest's Managing Director of Business Banking. They spoke about SBS and how it started, how to grow your business and mental health.
This was a great opportunity for the SBS community to meet and network. We really enjoyed it and look forward to attending future events.
Access My Events At The Small Business Sunday Event 2024
23rd February 2024
Access My Events attends their first Small Business Sunday #SBS event, organised by Theo and his team. This is an amazing opportunity for businesses in the #SBS community to network and meet with former and new winners. We share our journey from how it all started and what it meant to us to be in attendance among other amazing businesses, including hearing and meeting with #SBS creator himself, Theo Paphitis.
About Small Business Sunday
On the 24th of July 2023, we entered the Small Business Sunday, #SBS, weekly competition on Twitter. This is one of the UK’s leading business networks, founded by Dragons Den star, Theo Paphitis. We didn’t expect to win and when it was announced that Access My Events was a winner of #SBS, we couldn’t believe it. As a winner of #SBS you get a boost on social media through Theo’s large social media following and you get to join a large community of small business owners with the opportunity to attend an annual event organised by Theo and his team.
Planning Our Journey
When the event date was announced for the 23rd of February, we were very excited and couldn’t wait to attend, being our first #SBS event. We started to plan our travel and book accommodation in advance. While doing this, the excitement was building to the day of the event. We decided to travel a day before so that we could take it easy and be there on time because it was a full day from 9.00am until 5.30pm. For the first time we booked passenger assistance for our journey from London Euston to Birmingham by train and both ways Zubee had the assistance with no problems.
When we arrived in Birmingham, we took an Uber to the hotel and the Uber had dropped us off at the wrong hotel because there were two hotels with the same name. When we eventually got to the right hotel we checked in and went to have a bit of a walk around to explore the area. For Zubee, it felt like a mini holiday because she has not had the opportunity to go out of London much and to see some of the well-known shopping centres and restaurants in Birmingham. Event day had arrived, we took an Uber to the event venue, which was not very far and went straight to the reception area located on the 4th floor to get our name badge and were then taken into the hall to our reserved seats towards the front of the stage.
Event Day Highlights And What Went On
It was a real privilege to be among so many amazing businesses in the network from former and new winners. The event was opened on the main stage by guest speaker, Kypros Kyprianou, CEO of Theo Paphitis Group, followed by the creator of SBS himself, Theo Paphitis. It was amazing to hear him speak and how he started SBS, to it becoming a large community supporting small businesses. He said it’s all about planning for the week ahead and it was on a Sunday that he was sitting in Mrs Paphitis’s kitchen thinking how he could help entrepreneurs and small businesses because he knows how lonely the entrepreneurial journey can be. It was back in October 2010, that he created SBS, this being the 11th event, which has since grown with 4000 plus Small Business Sunday winners.
It was interesting to hear some of the stats from Theo, on the winners with 80% being female and 53% sole traders. It was a very motivating and inspiring event with a lot to take away from the day with expert advice sessions from the SBS partners and sponsors with breakout presentations throughout the day. The room was full of so much positive energy. There were many highlights from the event some of which were, hearing from Theo himself, a former SBS winner who turned an idea into a £1 million business, the Natwest panel of entrepreneurs talking about their journeys into entrepreneurship and business success to meeting with Theo and having our photo taken while being presented with our award.
Special Fireside Chat Guest Stacey Solomon
Finally, Theo welcomed Stacey Solomon to the stage for a fireside chat, followed by a Q&A. It was wonderful to hear about her journey from X Factor, presenting on TV, becoming an influencer with 6 million followers, to investing in her very first business, and what it means to her to support small businesses. It was the first time that the winners were so touched by a guest that Theo had to try and take control as she was getting side tracked during the Q&A, and some of the winners were getting very emotional while speaking to Stacey, and even giving her presents. She got off the stage and allowed the winners to take photos with her. It just showed how much Stacey's words meant to the winners.
You can read our article in the latest issue of Business Connect Magazine, which also features an interview with Theo about #SBS in the Press and Media section of our website. It was great to meet with the Business Connect team in person and to see our article in print at the event.
We would like to thank Theo for choosing and awarding Access My Events, to be part of this amazing network and we look forward to attending again next year.😊
If you are a business that would like to be in with a chance of winning, follow the link to our SBS Winners Blog to find out what it meant to us to be chosen as a winner and how you can enter for free. To see images from the event, go to the gallery page of our website.
Small Business Sunday Event 2024
23rd February 2024 ICC Birmingham
All Small Business Sunday winners get an invite to an annual event that is organised by Theo Paphitis and his team. It's an amazing opportunity to meet and network with like-minded business owners and get expert advice from the SBS partners and sponsors.
It was a real privilege for us to attend our very first #SBS event at the ICC in Birmingham on the 23rd of February. As a winner of SBS, we got the opportunity to meet with Theo and have a professional photo taken while being presented with our award. Below are some photos from the event.
Have a read of our blog about our SBS win and what it meant to us when it was announced that we were a winner, and how you can enter for free.
Lilac Review UK Launch Event
1st February 2024 at Lloyds Banking Group
We were excited to be invited to the launch of the Lilac Review by Small Business Britain and hosted by Lloyds Banking Group. This is a 2 year programme, which aims to break down barriers for disabled entrepreneurs in business. We heard a presentation about the review by Lloyds Banking Group and then from the Minister, followed by a panel discussion with 3 disabled founders led by, Michelle Ovens, Founder of Small Business Britain.
To learn more and get involved, follow the link The Lilac Review
