Honest access reviews from Tom “Wheelz” West

Wheely Good Reviews

Pubs, bars, clubs, hotels, restaurants, football grounds. I go, I take the photos and I tell you the truth about getting in, getting round and whether it’s actually worth it.

Send Tom somewhere @coachwheelz_ on Instagram, opens in a new tab
  • Football coach
  • Photographer
  • Social butterfly
  • Powerchair user
Tom in his powerchair in 777 Stores, grinning and holding up two big bags of shopping.
Retail therapy. Fully accessible, bank account less so.

Everyone who holds a door, moves a table or finds the key to the loo is part of this crowd.

1The scoring

A ramp is not a review.

Plenty of places tick the ramp box and the loo box and still leave you stuck by the door all night. So every place gets five checks, each scored out of five wheels, with photos and a straight reason for every score.

  1. Getting in

    Parking, the route to the door, steps, ramps, door widths and lifts that actually work.

    Measured in centimetres, not vibes.

  2. Getting round

    Can you actually get around once you are in? Space between tables, bars you can see over and whether I spent the night reversing.

    Full turn without an audience?

  3. The loo

    Is there one, is it unlocked, is it full of mop buckets and is the red cord hanging all the way to the floor where it belongs.

    Plus Changing Places and RADAR keys.

  4. The staff

    Do they understand accessibility? Do they talk to me or to my mate? Great staff can rescue a bad building and they always get the credit.

    Talked to me, not over me?

  5. Joining in

    Can you be part of it properly? Seeing the stage, getting on the dance floor, sitting with your mates rather than in a corner on your own.

    Did I get the same night everyone else got?

2The reviews

First reviews landing soon.

I am out doing the research right now. Somebody has to.

Now boarding

On the list already

  • Pubs
  • Bars
  • Clubs
  • Hotels
  • Restaurants
  • Football grounds
  • Gigs
  • Days out

Each one gets the five checks, real photos, the measurements that matter and an honest answer on whether it is worth the trip.

Get in firstTell me where to goBrilliant or rubbish, I want to hear about it. Follow the trip@coachwheelz_See it on Instagram before it lands here. Opens in a new tab.
Glasses on. Always.

3About Tom

Football coach. Photographer. Social butterfly. Powerchair user.

I’m Tom. Most people call me Wheelz. I reckon accessibility shouldn’t mean missing out on the places, the experiences and the nights everyone else gets to enjoy.

I’ve spent years throwing myself into pubs, bars, clubs, hotels, restaurants, football grounds and venues that range from brilliantly accessible to… very much not. A ramp and a loo sign only tell you half the story. I want to know if you can actually get around, whether the staff get it, whether you can join in properly and, most importantly, whether the place is actually worth going to.

So that’s what you get here. Useful information, told honestly, with a bit of humour and a lot of lived experience. And if a younger disabled person reads this and books the gig, the match or the night out, even better. Disability doesn’t have to mean living a smaller life.

What I’m after

  • Venues that get better
  • Disabled people expecting more
  • Hospitality getting accessibility right as standard, not as an afterthought

4Out and about

The research so far.

The logo is a wheelchair crowd surfing. This is where the idea came from.

Carnival, London. Right in the middle of it. Eight seconds, no sound.
Tom at carnival in a red and yellow football shirt, sat in his powerchair in the street with three mates standing round him and bunting overhead.
Carnival crew. Bunting, sound systems, zero parking.
Tom and his brother grinning at a café table, his brother's arm round his shoulders.
Coffee with my brother. Level floor, good table height, no complaints.
Late at night, Tom with two mates crouched either side of his powerchair, all three throwing up peace signs.
Late one. Peace signs mandatory.
A close up selfie of Tom and a mate in a dark club, both smiling at the camera.
Somewhere dark, loud and brilliant.

5The map

Every pin is a place I’ve been.

There are no pins yet. Where should the first one go?

Pins incoming

Where next?

Put your local on the map

A pub with a great ramp. A club that got it all wrong. A ground where the view from the wheelchair spaces is actually good. Tell me and it goes on the list.

Send Tom somewhere

6For venues

Wheely good places deserve Wheely Good Reviews.

Get it right and everybody will hear about it. Get it wrong and you will hear about it too, honestly and fairly, with the good bits in there as well. Fix it and I will come back and say so.

Want Tom to visit?

  • Honest, not harsh.
  • Great staff always get the credit.
  • Fix something and I will come back and update the review.
Invite Tom round

7Send Tom somewhere

Know a place that deserves a look?

Brilliant or rubbish, I want to hear about it. Venues, you can use this too. Tell me where it is and what happened and it goes on the list.

I read every one of these myself.

How was it?

What you send is held by UNight U.K. Ltd for the Wheely Good Reviews team and goes nowhere else. How your details are used.

Told you not to click it.

Now you’re here, crowd surf. Jump the footballs, pints, glasses, ramps, wheelchairs and stop signs. It gets harder every 10. Space, up arrow or tap to jump.

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