Accessibility Info

Customers wishing to use the access facilities and stay in the Accessibility Campsite need to book a General Camping Festival ticket, and then complete and submit an Access Requirements Form prior to arriving. Please note our application form is not currently available, so please sign up to our Accessibility Mailing List and we'll be in touch when the form is live.

Required Documentation

When applying for access at Wilderness we ask that you provide one of the following forms of documentation which will act as evidence of your requirements. Without this documentation we will be unable to grant you access or provide complimentary PA Tickets.

Please note: If you are on the Festival Republic access database (i.e. have previously applied and had an application approved within the last three years) you may not need to re-supply documentation.

Accepted forms of documentation are:

DLA (Care and/or mobility)

PIP (Personal Independence Payment)

A Medical Professionals letter (to be reviewed case by case)

Armed Forces Independence Payment

War Disablement Pension

D/deaf or blind registration

The Nimbus Access Card

Blue Badge (Permitted for parking requests only)

If you do not have one of the forms of the documentation listed above, please contact us, and we’ll be able to advise further. Alternatively, if you do have the required documentation but cannot include it in your application, please state you will forward it to us (by email or post) in the ‘Additional Notes’ box on the form.

All submitted documentation is kept strictly confidential and securely destroyed after processing.

Access Database

Whilst submitting your application form, you can choose to join Festival Republic’s Access Database. By doing so, once accepted a first time, you will not need to resubmit documentation for a further three years and will automatically be pre-approved for access at our festivals.

Please note: Once approved, we will only retain your name and email address. We will never use your information for any other purposes (unless specifically stated) or share this with any third parties.

Timeline

We aim to process all applications within four weeks of customers submitting an Access Requirements Form; however, due to demand, this is not always possible.

Once your application has been approved, we will send a confirmation email detailing the facilities you have requested access to and confirming your PA Ticket (if applicable).

Everyone who successfully applies for access at Wilderness will be sent an Access Guide (via email) 1 week before the event, including detailed access information.

The Access Guide will include:

- Arrival Information

- Festival Changes and Updates

- Access Maps (including route distances, charging points, accessible toilet and platform locations and more)

- Opening Times

- Access Facilities and more

We recommend saving a copy of the Access Guide for your reference (once available). No hard copies will be available at the festival.

A downloadable copy of the Access Guide is available here.

If a customer is unable to attend Wilderness without the support from a Companion/PA then we will provide an additional ticket at no extra cost.

To provide a Companion/PA ticket free of charge, there does need to be at least 1 full-priced adult ticket in the party. If the Access Customer is under the age of 18 and is the only paying ticket holder in the party, they will require 1 adult ticket to be approved for a Companion/PA.

You can apply for a Companion/PA Ticket when completing your Access Requirements Form.

Please note:
You do not need to book a Companion/PA Ticket, however, Access Customers will need to book a festival ticket for themselves before applying. We are unable to refund tickets booked for Companion/PAs.

Companion/PA tickets are provided with the understanding that the PA is willing and able to assist the Access Customer throughout their entire stay at the festival. The Companion/PA must be able to perform all requirements as needed by the Access Customer and must provide assistance to the Access Customer during an evacuation or other emergency.

Companion/PA Tickets must be applied for via the Access Requirements Form and can only be approved by members of the Access Team.

Accessible viewing platforms, areas and toilets are provided within the Arena at Wilderness at certain stages. These are controlled by a wristband system and managed by the Access Arena Manager. To ensure they run smoothly, each location has its own stewards and security team.

All platforms have ramp access, wheelchair-accessible toilets and charging points, and the locations and details of these will be provided in the Access Guide. Limited seating is also available at each platform, however, Access Customers are welcome to bring their own (where space allows).

As platforms have a limited capacity, these are strictly for Access Customers plus one (1) companion.

We operate our platforms/areas on a first come, first served basis and whilst we try to ensure that we have sufficient space for everyone, demand varies by artist and at times there may be a wait.

Wheelchair-accessible and standard toilets are located at all of our viewing platforms.

Access Customers can apply (via our Access Requirements Form) to stay in our Accessibility Campsite containing additional access facilities. By positioning these facilities in one campsite, we can ensure that they are serviced, cleaned and maintained regularly.

The Accessibility Campsite is located as close to the Arena as possible, staffed 24 hours, and is where our Access Team are based.

Campsite facilities include:

Wheelchair accessible toilets and showers

A Changing Places Unit featuring a changing bed, a toilet, sink and a hoist. Please be aware that Access Customers must bring their own sling. (This unit is not for sleeping.)

Standard toilets and showers

Drinking water points and accessible sink

Waste-disposal point

Electrical points for charging wheelchairs or mobility scooters

Fridge for secure medication storage

Campsite hub and information (where our Access Team are based)

Group Size

As well as you and your PA, we also allow up to two friends to camp with you in the Accessibility Campsite (a maximum of 4 people including you). You must register the number of your group during the application process so that they are issued with the appropriate wristbands to access the Accessibility Campsite. Please only bring the necessary number of tents needed to accommodate your party. No gazebos or trailer tents are allowed.

Caravans, Campervans and Live-In Vehicles

We can accommodate a limited number of caravans and live-in vehicles in the Accessibility Campsite. To bring a caravan or live-in vehicle, please select this option in your application. We will then email you the link to book an Accessibility Live-In Vehicle Pass. Power hook-ups are only supplied due to medical reasons, at the approval of the Access Team, and must be applied for using the Access Requirements Form.

Please note: Live-In Vehicle Passes are supplementary (in addition to your festival ticket) and as such will incur an additional charge.

If you are an Access Customer staying in any of our other campsites, please notify the Access Team in your application. We are still able to provide a PA ticket, at no additional charge, that will allow the PA to remain with you in these campsites.

We will not be able to replicate the same facilities as we do in our Accessibility Campsite, so there may be fewer or no accessible showers or toilets in these campsites. There will be longer distances to walk into the Arena from these campsites. For more details, contact the Access Team in advance via our Access Form.

Travel

We strongly advise planning your journey before leaving for the festival. Specific travel information will be sent out via email to Access Customers prior to the event.

If driving, please be wary that road restrictions directing traffic to specific car parks (including our Access Car Park) will be in place during the event. Please follow the temporary road signs rather than sat nav near Cornbury Park.

For those travelling by public transport, please refer to the Plan section of the Wilderness website, where more information on this will be available nearer to the festival.

Access Car Park

Wilderness has a dedicated Access Car Park located close to the Accessibility Check-In and Campsite. If you require the use of this car park, you will need to apply for Access Parking (via the Access Requirements Form)

Please note:

Blue Badge Holders must register with the Access Team to get an Access Parking Pass.

Access parking is free of charge, but only when applied for in advance.

Parking in the accessible car park is limited, so friends and family arriving in separate vehicles will not be able to use this car park. Instead, we recommend they use one of our other car parks by booking a Parking Pass here (link to Book Tickets page). If staying in the Accessibility Campsite, the Blue Car Park is the next closest Car Park.

Drop Off Pass

If you are being dropped off at / picked up from Wilderness, you can apply for a Drop-Off Pass through our Access Requirements Form. This will allow temporary entry into the Access Car Park and Campsite.

Depending on where you decide to stay, your festival wristbands and applicable accessibility passes will be available to collect from the relevant campsite box office or the Accessibility Check-In on arrival. Please ensure your confirmation email or mobile ticket is ready to collect these.

BSL Interpreting Services

A performance interpreting service will be provided by fully qualified interpreters. Our interpreters cover all Main Stage headliners plus a selection of other performances.

If this is a service, you require we would love to know what performances you would like to have interpreted. You can request this before the festival via our Access Requirements Form. Please note, requesting does not guarantee fulfilment.

Hearing Loops

A hearing loop is installed at the Access Check-In, at some of our venues and at The Info Tent. Exact locations will be shown in our Access Guide.

We welcome assistance dogs at our event.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission states that “Assistance dogs are highly trained" which means they:

• Will not wander freely around the premises
• Will sit or lie quietly on the floor next to their owner
• Are unlikely to foul in a public place

We recognise that not all assistance dogs are registered with Assistance Dogs UK Members and assistance dogs can be trained by their owners.

Where an assistance dog has not been trained by an Assistance Dogs UK-registered charity, we need to ask customers to demonstrate that their dog has been trained:

• Not to wander around the premises or approach other customers.
• To only go to the toilet on command in a designated area of the event.
• To sit or lie quietly next to the customer they are supporting.

This request is to ensure we meet customers’ access requirements whilst ensuring we also fulfil our legal obligation to prove a safe environment for all customers.

If a dog does not act along these lines while on-site it and the users/owner will be requested to leave the festival.

As Cornbury is a working deer park, dogs must remain on the lead at all times at the festival. Any dogs not on the lead could result in you being asked to leave the festival immediately.

Please note that our Access facilities are unable to cater for people with temporary impairments such as broken bones, recovery from surgery, healing injuries or pregnant women.

If you have a temporary impairment, please be aware that there will be a lot of walking at Wilderness and chairs are not allowed into the festival arena.

Please note that strobe effects may be used at the event.  There will be no specific announcements prior to the use of strobes and lasers.

If you need to bring medication with you, we recommend bringing a copy of your doctor’s letter or prescription. Please keep medication in its original boxes and only bring enough for your stay. There will also be a fridge available if you require cold storage for your medication. Please do not be offended if security question the medication you are bringing into the Festival, it is their job to ensure the safety and security of all customers

Medical and Welfare Facilities are available 24 hours and can be located in the Arena and Campsites (clearly signposted). Doctors, paramedics, first aiders and fully equipped ambulances are based at all our medical facilities, along with contacts for local pharmacies and emergency dentists.

Security and Stewards are on hand in the Arena and in the Campsites.

They have been briefed to offer information, help and support. If you are unwell or require assistance, please approach a member of the Security and Stewarding Team who are clearly identifiable by their numbered tabards/shirts.

In the instance of an emergency evacuation please ensure that your PA is aware that they are your main point of assistance. Security and stewards located near the viewing platform will assist in moving everybody to a place of safety.

Wilderness is an outdoor event taking place at Cornbury Park on a mixture of grass, gravel and hard standing pathways. The Accessibility Campsite and Main Arena are situated entirely on grass.

It is important to be aware that during inclement weather some parts of the site may be muddy, water-logged or dusty, and may be difficult to navigate around.

The majority of our Access Viewing Platforms are uncovered so please dress appropriately, and for all weather conditions.

We are proud to work with Festival Spirit, a life-changing charity that provide the full festival experience to those who would not normally be able to enjoy it due to life-limiting illness or disability. You can support the amazing work they do by donating when you book your festival tickets. They will also have a marquee in the Accessibility Campsite, where they will be stationed throughout the festival with their guests.

The 24/7 onsite customer phone number for the Access Team: 07383 880 445.

If you require further assistance or information that cannot be found on the website, please contact the Access Team via:

Email: accessibility@wildernessfestival.com

Phone: 0207 009 3490

Office opening times are: 10am – 6pm, Monday to Friday

Post: Access Team, Festival Republic, 30 St John Street, London, EC1M 4AY

Mailing List: You can also sign up to our Accessibility Mailing List

Please note: We aim to respond to all email enquiries within a week, however, this may take longer during busy times.