Kate Lanky

Review of Islington Assembly Hall

***Most of my review is about accessibility as a d...

***Most of my review is about accessibility as a disabled visitor, so this might not be if interest to everyone!***

I had never been to this venue before, and I live across the country in Birmingham, so I wasn't sure what to expect. As I am disabled, I spoke to the venue on the phone and via email before booking tickets months in advance, to arrange for accessible seating. The staff I spoke to were very pleasant, helpful and kind and I felt confident they would be capable of helping me on the night.

When the night if the gig came, the staff were excellent and beyond my expectations. I was greeted warmly, let through and given a wristband to gain access to the seating area which made me feel like a VIP, not an afterthought, like some venues make the disabled visitors feel. They were kind, courteous and made jokes as well as being helpful and practical. They gave me their names in case I needed them and were incredibly courteous.

The seats themselves were comfortable and in a safe, cordoned off area with a good view. I've literally been given a bar stool to put in the pit before how at some gigs which is not appropriate!!
The disabled toilets were only accessible from this area which meant they weren't disgusting like in some places. We were given cups of ice water for free throughout which was very handy as it was a heatwave and I suffer with low blood pressure which need to be kept up with keeping hydrated. This is the only diwnside- the bottles of water we purchased were five pounds each!! Maybe that's normal for London, but we thought that was quite excessive so I'm glad they also have out free water!

Overall I'm delighted with the way I was treated and the accessibility and I recommend the venue to any other disabled visitors. The venue itself isn't easy to get to without getting a taxi die to Islington parking rules, but once you get there, the staff are exemplary. I wish I could remember staff names so I could praise them specifically, but everyone I encountered was incredibly pleasant, on the phone, via email and in person.

A very disability positive place