There has been a castle on this site since 1119. In the 13th Century it was a favourite residence of King Edward 1st. In the 16th Century it was used by Henry VIII for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.
The Castle has been open to the public since 1976.
Away from the main castle buildings stands the more recent addition of a gift shop and restaurant. As the restaurant is accessed via steps, it was not possible to provide access for those with impaired mobility or parents with pushchairs.
Although this building is relatively new, the rules regarding what can and cannot be changed were very demanding. The customer installed both a FlexStep and fixed stairs. Both stairs have the same design but the fixed stairs have no motors and a divider between the lift and fixed stairs is added. The fixed staircase had a balustrade to one side only - as opposed to ordinary staircases - due to width restrictions. A simple handrail was fixed to the opposite wall to overcome this.
The FlexStep was installed by our distributor Level Access Lifts, Southampton, England.
The FlexStep stairlift is designed to function both as an ordinary staircase and as a wheelchair lift. Developed and manufactured by Liftup, the FlexStep is flexible and equally useful for pedestrians and wheelchair users alike. FlexStep is an innovative 2-in-1 solution and saves space compared to installing both a flight of stairs and a separate lift.
Read more about FlexStep
