Facilities & access

All ticket offices, toilets, performance and exhibition spaces at Southbank Centre are accessible to all, as are the cafes, bars and restaurants across the site. We have excellent public transport links with step-free access.

Please note that due to current refurbishment works, there is no step-free access available from ground level to Queen Elizabeth Hall Roof Garden.

Getting to Southbank Centre

Opening times

Parking

Blue Badge holders and those with access requirements can be dropped off on the Queen Elizabeth Hall slip road off Belvedere Road (the road between Royal Festival Hall and Hayward Gallery).

The Hayward car park is now closed to cars. Alternative parking is available nearby at the National Theatre car park (330 metres) and Cornwall Road multi-storey car park (490 metres), subject to charges. Alternative parking for Blue Badge holders visiting Southbank Centre can be found at the National Theatre car park (330 metres). Just take your badge and car park ticket to Royal Festival Hall Ticket Office on Level 2, for validation before you leave.

A drop-off point at Royal Festival Hall (30 metres) has been created for visitors who are unable to walk from alternative car parks.

View photos and video of step-free routes

Help on site

If you have any concerns or need assistance while you visit us, please contact any member of staff and they will help you or contact a Duty Manager. 

For visitors with prams, buggies and wheelchairs, or requiring step-free access to Level 1 spaces (Gamelan Room; Blue Room; Violet Room; White Room) please go to the Welcome Hub at Level 2 Foyers, Green Side, Royal Festival Hall, where our Visitor Experience team is happy to assist you.

Get top visit tips and meet our team

• Assistance is available for blind and visually impaired visitors, including guiding and narration. Phone or email our access team to find out more.
• Assistance dogs are welcome.
• There are accessible toilets on every level of Royal Festival Hall.
• Sound enhancement systems are available in all our venues. Contact the Ticket Office to collect one (subject to availablility).
• Strobe lighting is rarely used in performances. We will put warning signs on auditorium entry doors of any event where it is used.
• Wheelchairs are available for visitors by visiting the Artists' Entrance when you arrive (subject to availability).
• Talk to a member of staff at the auditorium entrance if you have a disability that means you can’t queue, or you need extra time to take your seat. They can arrange priority entry for you as soon as the doors open.

Visitors with medical requirements

We welcome visitors who need to bring medicines, food or soft drinks to manage a medical condition, or medical equipment.

Assisted events

We are making more and more events accessible to a wider audience through a range of assisted formats: British Sign Language Interpretation, Speech-to-Text Transcription, Audio Description, Captioning and pre-event Touch Tours.

We are also introducing more Relaxed Performances, suitable particularly for people with autistic spectrum conditions, sensory and communication disorders and learning disabilities. They take a more casual approach to event etiquette and ask people to be aware of their fellow audience members who may need to move more or make involuntary noises.

Southbank Centre is committed to offering access to performance services such as British Sign Language interpreters, captioning, audio description and relaxed performances. We are working very hard with event promoters to provide these services if required. For some events we have programmed in assisted performances. We aim to provide access upon request to our visitors who require an accessible provision to be put in place for them to be able to attend a performance but this will be subject to the request being made within a reasonable timeframe (minimum six weeks before the event date), financial resource, and approval from the events promoter. Please contact us if you require this service and we’ll do all we reasonably can to help. We aim to make hearing enhancement available at all live performances.

See upcoming Access Events

Find out more about our Access Scheme

Family and baby facilities

Southbank Centre welcomes children and families throughout the year and provides world-class facilities to make your visit an enjoyable one. The site is fully accessible to pushchairs and wheelchair users. 

All our venues have public toilets with wheelchair access and baby changing facilities. There is a cloakroom available on level 1, Royal Festival Hall. This is accessed via steps or platform lift from the Southbank Centre Square doors.

Cloakroom

Situated on level 1, Royal Festival Hall, our cloakroom opens approximately 60 minutes before the start of any Royal Festival Hall show, and closes around 15 minutes after the performance ends. It is also open on selected festival days.

The charge is £1 per item, which must be collected on the same day they are stored. Items left here are at the owner’s risk and we cannot accept any responsibility for loss or damage, from any cause, to items left in the cloakroom.

Food and drink

All the cafes, bars, restaurants and markets at Southbank Centre have step-free access. If you are dining at Skylon, please come to the Level 2 Ticket Office at Royal Festival Hall, where a visitor host will assist you.

You are welcome to bring your own food and soft drinks to Royal Festival Hall.