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Refund Policy

The Atkinson has a no refund policy. Tickets can be exchanged for alternative shows within a 3 month period for a fee of £1 per ticket. Tickets must be exchanged at the Box Office 48 hours prior to the performance.

There are events which cannot be exchanged – please check details on the event page or at Box Office before booking.

Line-ups are correct at time of purchase but may be subject to change. Customers will not be notified of any changes to the line-up and no ticket exchanges will be offered for changes to the line-up.

If an event is cancelled or rescheduled due to unforeseen circumstances, customers are entitled to a ticket refund, a ticket exchange, or can choose to donate the cost to The Atkinson Development Trust.

The Atkinson is not liable to cover travel and/or accommodation costs.

A booking fee of £1 per ticket is applicable to purchases made online and over the phone. Booking fees are an administrative cost and are non-refundable.

Refund Policy Updated 03.04.2024

House Rules

Latecomers

Latecomers may be refused admission to events, unless there is a suitable break in the performance.

Photography

It is The Atkinson’s policy not to allow photography and sound/filming during our events.

Drunken Policy

We want you to have a good time when you are here watching a band or enjoying a show. However, we ask that you are mindful of others and remember we are unable to serve openly drunk patrons. If you are inebriated and are spoiling the enjoyment of others, including making too much noise, you will be asked to leave. We hope this does not happen as we want everyone to have a great time with us!

Food & Drink

Only food and drink bought on the premises can be consumed. We appreciate your understanding.

Access Policy

Our commitment to access

This Policy supports our mission by providing a framework that strives to include all our visitors, potential visitors, volunteers and staff.  We will make our collections and buildings accessible, by removing as many physical, intellectual or cultural barriers to access as practicable, within the limits of budgetary, legal and planning considerations.

We are committed to developing a programme of activities and events that are designed to involve, educate and engage groups from a wide range of backgrounds and all sectors of Sefton’s communities.

Areas of access covered in this policy include:

  • Physical access: we aim to maintain facilities so that The Atkinson is as physically accessible as possible.
  • Intellectual access: we aim to provide information in a range of accessible formats appropriate to the needs of a wide range of visitors.
  • Emotional access: we aim to provide an excellent standard of customer care to ensure that all visitors feel welcome and comfortable in The Atkinson.
  • Equality, Inclusion and Diversity – we will provide an inclusive and welcoming environment which will supports the principles of equality and diversity in a pro-active manner.

Policy background

This policy has been written in line with Sefton MBC’s Equality and Diversity Policy.  Sefton MBC has a public sector equality duty under the Equality Act 2010.  The Act brought together existing equality laws and made them stronger.  It also strengthened existing duties and places new duties on public bodies.  This policy also incorporates a Public Circulation and Legibility Strategy that was created by Levitt Berstein for the refurbishment of The Atkinson.

The premises

  • The main entrance is a paved flat surface with a slight uphill gradient. There are automatic doors at the entrance and approximately 5 metres into the foyer.  There is a lift to all floors which is located near the library entrance and is accessible via a ramp.  Lifts have tactile buttons and doors are held open by visual sensors.
  • Where possible ramps have been used in preference to lifts. Ramps have clear widths and good handrails.
  • The junior library is accessible via the lift in the main library.
  • Doors have been removed where possible or adapted to be held open on electromagnetic holdback devices. The gallery doors open automatically as visitors approach the main entrance.
  • There are accessible toilets available on all floors and the first floor has a Changing Places accredited http://www.changing-places.org/ facility, including adjustable height changing bed and sink with H track hoist. The room has two emergency chords at, a shower and privacy screen.
  • The Theatre and the Studio are located on level 1 of the building, and there are 32 steps up from the foyer
  • An induction loop is set up on our Box Office counter and full infra red emitters in all our performance spaces.
  • Assistance dogs are welcome. Assistance dogs are dogs that have been highly trained to carry out a range of tasks and alerts that support a disabled person or person with a long-term medical condition. Examples include a guide dog that guides a visually impaired person, a medical alert dog that alerts a person to an oncoming medical episode, an assistance dog that alerts someone with a psychiatric condition to take medication.
  • Information for potential visitors explaining our opening times, services and access to collections is available on leaflets, by telephone, via e-mail, social media and on our website as well as on various platforms including Bloomberg Connects. Our website includes an Access section which has detailed info about floor levels, disabled access, floor plans etc.

Consultation and audiences

  • We will regularly consult and evaluate our services with users and use this information to ensure our service meet their needs.
  • We will consult with non-users to identify barriers to participation.
  • We are committed to developing and widening our audiences through our Audience Development Plan.

Community links and outreach

  • We are committed to developing links to new and existing audiences, especially through partnership with other community and educational organisations.
  • We will maintain outreach options for those who are unable to visit, particularly the Loan and Memory Box schemes for audiences in schools care homes and hospitals.
  • We are committed to providing volunteer opportunities and we seek to recruit volunteers from diverse backgrounds.

Collections

  • We are committed to increasing public access to the collections and information and to increasing knowledge and understanding of the collections and heritage.
  • We will provide varied means of access to the collections including displays, temporary exhibitions, loans, object handling, events and activities.
  • To increase access to collections not on display we offer research facilities and access to staff expertise.
  • Stored collections are available to view by appointment with the curatorial team.
  • Collections are continually being updated and developed to better reflect the diversity of Sefton Borough. A de-colonialisation project has been undertaken to better understand links to the slave trade.

Information

  • The needs of visitors are taken into account when preparing and presenting collections information and interpretation in the galleries and online.
  • We will ensure that all information and communications (including leaflets, labels and website) follow good practice and are physically and intellectually accessible.
  • We aim to keep the public informed of the collections, temporary displays and events through appropriate publicity including a range of social media.
  • We will provide levels of information and interpretation to suit a wide range of audiences and abilities.
  • Information on displays will be provided in a several formats, for example labels, large print, film, interactives and audio.
  • We aim to present labels, displays, online and marketing materials that respect the diversity of visitors’ backgrounds. Images and/or descriptions of The Atkinson will reflect the diversity of the community.

Learning and programming

  • We will provide a range of suitable handling materials drawn from the collections for different audiences and levels of ability.
  • We will provide learning programmes that are tailored to the needs and requirements of specific groups and audiences.
  • Educational materials will be made available for different audiences and abilities, as required and as resources allow.
  • Temporary exhibitions, events and activities will be programmed throughout the year for people of all ages and to suit a variety of learning styles.
  • We have developed a Youth Engagement Strategy to prioritise the needs of younger visitors to The Atkinson.

Customer Care

  • All staff members are involved in implementing this policy, assisting and welcoming our visitors.
  • We will always have a trained First Aider on site during opening hours and have an automated external defibrillator (AED) on site.
  • The Atkinson will work within the framework set out by Sefton MBC Service Standards and The Atkinson’s Customer Care Standards.
  • All users will be treated with equal respect within an inclusive atmosphere and welcomed according to their individual needs.
  • We will continue to provide baby changing facilities, access for pushchairs and seating for the ease of visitors. We are a breastfeeding friendly venue.
  • We will provide adequate signage and navigation to suit a range of needs and will respond to requests made by the public regarding information required in alternative formats, as resources allow.
  • We provide visitor facilities to meet our customers’ needs including a shop and a café.
  • We are committed to providing a safe environment for all. We have procedures for the safe evacuation of all users and staff in an emergency.  There is a safeguarding policy and procedure for children and vulnerable adults.
  • We are committed to retaining our Visit England VAQAS award (Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Scheme) and we will set annual improvement targets for visitor access.

Staff and training

  • Sefton MBC is an equal opportunities employer. All people will receive equal opportunities in recruitment, employment and training.  We are committed to increasing the diversity of our workforce.
  • As part of the staff induction process, new staff will receive disability awareness training, including addressing the needs of visitors with specific requirements, appropriate use of language and assisting those with disabilities during the evacuation procedure.
  • Staff will receive training in the areas of disability awareness and equality legislation and good practice. Online training in equality and diversity is mandatory for all staff and is refreshed annually.
  • ‘Dementia Friends’ Information sessions are available to all staff, The Atkinson has trained Dementia Champions who facilitate an ongoing programme of Dementia Awareness training for staff, volunteers, partners and other stakeholders to attend.
  • ‘Autism Friendly Library’ training is available to all staff working in the library as recommended by ASCEL – the Association of Senior Children’s and Education Librarians.
  • Staff have received training on access issues for visitors with visual impairments and resources such as large print labels, tactile materials, swell drawings and audio-described tours are made available for exhibitions.

Financial

  • Access to the museum, galleries and library is free.
  • We will provide activities free of charge related to the museum displays and ongoing exhibition programme, so that all parts of the community can take part in our activity programme. Some activities made be provided on a cost recovery basis and some workshops and classes may be offered on a fully commercial basis with concessions for people in receipt of benefits.
  • Funding will be sought from external sources, e.g. The Atkinson Development Trust, to support a range of inclusive activities for visitors to The Atkinson

Privacy Policy

The Atkinson is committed to protecting your personal information and being transparent about what information we hold about you

Using personal information allows us to develop a better understanding and build relationships with our visitors and patrons and in turn we are able to provide you with relevant, timely information about our projects, events and activities. Because we also have a charity, it helps us engage with potential donors and supporters.

This policy  clearly explains how we collect, process, hold and share information we collect from you directly .

We use your information in accordance with applicable laws concerning the protection of personal information.

This policy explains:

  • What information we may collect about you and how
  • How we may use that information
  • In what situations we may disclose your information to third parties (if any)
  • Our use of cookies to improve your use of our website
  • Information about how we keep your personal information secure, how we maintain it and your rights to be able to access it

If you have any queries about this policy please contact Emma Harrison, Principal Manager: Access, Engagement & Enterprise, The Atkinson Emma.Harrison@sefton.gov.uk

Why we collect your information

The Atkinson collects your personal information in a number of ways:
a) By supplying us with the information listed above on an individual basis by registering as a user or subscribing to receive updates or offers from us. To become a registered user you must provide us with your name, postcode, and email address, but you may also provide us with additional information if you choose to.

b) by corresponding with us by email, in which case we may retain the content of your email messages together with your email address and our responses

c) by purchasing a ticket for one of our events, applying to be a volunteer or job with us

d) through any preferences and areas of interest as advised by you on subscribing to our online services;

e) by information provided when you use our mobile optimised website from your portable hand-held device including details of your physical location, where you have agreed to it being used.

We may collect Information about your computer, including where available your IP address, operating system, browser type and the geographical location of your computer, for system administration purposes. We may also report aggregate information to our advertisers. This is statistical data about browsing actions and patterns and does not identify you as an individual.

Marketing Communications

We aim to communicate with you about our work in ways you find relevant, timely and respectful. To do this we use data that we have stored about you, such as what events you have booked for, any pre-show meals or products paid for, and any preferences you may have told us about.

We use our legitimate organisational interest as the legal basis for communications by post and email. In the case of postal mailings, you may object to receiving these at any time using the contact details at the end of this policy. In the case of email, we will give you an opportunity to opt out of receiving them during your first purchase with us. If you do not opt out we will provide you with an option to unsubscribe in every email you receive, or alternatively you can contact us at the contact details provided at the end of the policy.

We may also contact you about our work via telephone but we will always get explicit consent from you before doing this. This will only happen if you have booked a show and we need to get in touch with you about the logistic of that show or to inform you of a cancellation or change of date.

We use MailChimp to send you emails after you have opted in to receive them, every email we send you will give you the option to opt out.  MailChimp servers are based in the US, however as part of this new data processing agreement they have stated that they are a part of the EU-US Privacy Shield, which allows the transfer of data between the EU and US. As part of GDPR, all EU member states have signed off on this new privacy shield meaning using MailChimp is GDPR compliant.

The lawful basis on which we use this information

Article 6(1)(b) of the General Data Protection Regulation gives the Council a lawful basis where processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is party or in order to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering into a contract

Article 6(1)(c) of the General Data Protection Regulation gives the Council a lawful basis for collecting and using personal data in order to comply with its legal obligations,

Article 6(1)(e) of the General Data Protection Regulation gives the Council a lawful basis for collecting and using personal data where it is in the exercise of official authority vested in the Council.

Who we share your information with?

There are certain circumstances under which we may disclose your personal information to third parties. These are as follows:

● To relevant subsidiaries as and when necessary for them to be able to provide you with products or services you have requested. Great Little Place for pre-show meals, visiting companies for Meet & Greet packages etc

● To our own service providers who process the data on our behalf and on our instructions (for example our ticketing system software provider). In these cases we require that these third parties comply strictly with our instructions and with data protection laws, for example around security of personal data).

● Where we are under duty to disclose your personal information in order to comply with any legal obligation (e.g. government bodies and law enforcement agencies).

● To specific named visiting companies whose performances you have attended, in these cases we will always ask for your explicit consent first.

Storing your information

We will only retain your Information for as long as is necessary for the purpose or purposes for which we have collected it. The criteria that we use to establish retention periods will be determined by the nature of the data and the purposes for which it is kept. For example, if we receive your Information through a competition entry, we will retain your data for as long as is necessary to administer the competition. If we receive your Information when you apply for a job, we will retain your data for as long as is necessary to process your application, and maintain application statistics.

Requesting access to your personal data

Under data protection legislation, you have the right to request access to information that we hold. To make a request for your personal information contact Emma Harrison, Principal Manager: Access, Engagement & Enterprise, The Atkinson Emma.Harrison@sefton.gov.uk , or the Data Protection Officer ino.information@sefton.gov.uk

You also have the right to:

  • object to processing of personal data that is likely to cause, or is causing, damage or distress
  • prevent processing for the purpose of direct marketing
  • object to decisions being taken by automated means
  • in certain circumstances, have inaccurate personal data rectified, blocked, erased or destroyed and
  • The right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority (the Information Commissioner’s Office)

Right to data portability in certain circumstances

This right exists in respect of information that:

  • you have provided to us previously
  • where the processing is based on the individual’s consent or the performance of a contract and
  • is processed by us using automated means.

While we are happy for such requests to be made, we are not able to guarantee technical compatibility with a third party organisation’s systems. We are also unable to comply with requests that relate to information of others without their consent.

You can exercise any of the above rights by contacting us at the address or email address set out above. You can exercise your rights free of charge.
Most of the above rights are subject to limitations and exceptions. We will provide reasons if we are unable to comply with any request for the exercise of your rights.

Consent

To the extent that we are processing your information based on your consent, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time. You can do this by unsubscribing via the link provided in any direct marketing communication, or contacting us at the address or email address set out above.

Cookies

Similar to other commercial websites, our Website uses a technology called “cookies” and web server logs to collect information about how our Website is used. A cookie is a very small text document, which often includes an anonymous unique identifier. When you visit a website, that site’s computer asks your computer for permission to store this file in a part of your hard drive specifically designated for cookies
Information gathered through cookies and web server logs may include the date and time of visits, the pages viewed, time spent at our Website, and the websites visited just before and just after our Website.

Cookies, in conjunction with our web server’s log files, allow us to calculate the aggregate number of people visiting our Website and which parts of the website are most popular. This helps us gather feedback so that we can improve our Website and better serve our customers. Cookies do not allow us to gather any personal Information about you and we do not generally store any personal Information that you provided to us in your cookies.
We use ‘session’ cookies which enable you to carry information across pages of the Website and avoid having to re-enter information. Session cookies enable us to compile statistics that help us to understand how the Website is being used and to improve its structure.
We also use ‘persistent’ cookies which remain in the cookies file of your browser for longer and help us to recognise you as a unique visitor to the Website, tailoring the content of certain areas of the Website to offer you content that match your preferred interests.

Your Debit and Credit Card information

If you use you debit or credit card to purchase from us or make a donation, we will endure that this is carried out securely and in accordance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS).
We optionally allow you to sore your card details for use in future transactions. This is carried out in compliance with PCI-DSS and in a way that none of our staff members are able to see your full card details. We never store you 3 or 4 digit security code.

Changes to our Privacy Policy

This privacy policy can be changed by us at any time. If we change our privacy policy in the future, we will advise you of material changes or updates to our privacy policy by email, where we are holding your email address.

Complaints

If you have a concern about the way we are collecting or using your personal data, we request that you raise your concern with us in the first instance. Alternatively, you can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office at https://ico.org.uk/concerns/

Information Commissioner’s Office

Address: Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Telephone: 0303 123 11113
Website: https://ico.org.uk/concerns/

Further Information

If you would like further information about this privacy notice, please contact: Emma Harrison, Principal Manager: Access, Engagement & Enterprise, The Atkinson: Emma.Harrison@sefton.gov.uk

Or contact Sefton Council’s Data Protection Officer at: Telephone: 0345 140 0845 / email ino.information@sefton.gov.uk

Website Terms & Conditions

1. Terms

By accessing this web site, you are agreeing to be bound by these web site Terms and Conditions of Use, all applicable laws and regulations, and agree that you are responsible for compliance with any applicable local laws. If you do not agree with any of these terms, you are prohibited from using or accessing this site. The materials contained in this web site are protected by applicable copyright and trade mark law.

2. Use License

Permission is granted to temporarily download one copy of the materials (information or software) on The Atkinson’s web site for personal, non-commercial transitory viewing only. This is the grant of a license, not a transfer of title, and under this license you may not: modify or copy the materials; use the materials for any commercial purpose, or for any public display (commercial or non-commercial); attempt to decompile or reverse engineer any software contained on The Atkinson’s web site; remove any copyright or other proprietary notations from the materials; or
transfer the materials to another person or “mirror” the materials on any other server. This license shall automatically terminate if you violate any of these restrictions and may be terminated by The Atkinson at any time. Upon terminating your viewing of these materials or upon the termination of this license, you must destroy any downloaded materials in your possession whether in electronic or printed format.

3. Disclaimer

The materials on The Atkinson’s web site are provided “as is”. The Atkinson makes no warranties, expressed or implied, and hereby disclaims and negates all other warranties, including without limitation, implied warranties or conditions of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement of intellectual property or other violation of rights. Further, The Atkinson does not warrant or make any representations concerning the accuracy, likely results, or reliability of the use of the materials on its Internet web site or otherwise relating to such materials or on any sites linked to this site.

4. Limitations

In no event shall The Atkinson or its partners be liable for any damages (including, without limitation, damages for loss of data or profit, or due to business interruption,) arising out of the use or inability to use the materials on The Atkinson’s Internet site, even if The Atkinson or one of its authorized representative has been notified orally or in writing of the possibility of such damage. Because some jurisdictions do not allow limitations on implied warranties, or limitations of liability for consequential or incidental damages, these limitations may not apply to you.

5. Revisions and Errata

The materials appearing on The Atkinson’s web site could include technical, typographical, or photographic errors. The Atkinson does not warrant that any of the materials on its web site are accurate, complete, or current. The Atkinson may make changes to the materials contained on its web site at any time without notice. The Atkinson does not, however, make any commitment to update the materials.

6. Links

The Atkinson has not reviewed all of the sites linked to its Internet web site and is not responsible for the contents of any such linked site. The inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement by The Atkinson of the site. Use of any such linked web site is at the user’s own risk.

7. Site Terms of Use Modifications

The Atkinson may revise these terms of use for its web site at any time without notice. By using this web site you are agreeing to be bound by the then current version of these Terms and Conditions of Use.

8. Governing Law

Any claim relating to The Atkinson shall be governed by the laws of the relevant bodies without regard to its conflict of law provisions.

General Terms and Conditions applicable to Use of a Website.

Website Accessibility Statement

This accessibility statement applies to The Atkinson website.

This website is run by Sefton Council. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

  • change colours, contrast levels and fonts
  • zoom in up to 200% without the text spilling off the screen
  • navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
  • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
  • listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We’ve also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.

My Computer My Way has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability and the AT Hive can help you find assistive technologies that work for you.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible. You can see a full list of any issues we currently know about in the Non-accessible content section of this statement.

Feedback and contact information

If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact:
Emma Harrison, Principal Manager: Access, Engagement & Enterprise, The Atkinson, Emma.Harrison@sefton.gov.uk

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille, contact:
info@sefton.gov.uk, 01704 533 333

We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 10 working days.

Read tips on contacting organisation about inaccessible websites.

Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Technical information about this website’s accessibility

Sefton Council is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance status

The website has been tested against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standard.

This website is not compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.2 AA standard. The non-compliances are listed below.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

  • Social media icons and other icon controls on some pages do not have text descriptions. Many images on cards or tiles do not have appropriate alt text or are not marked as decorative. This fails WCAG 1.1.1 Non-text Content (A).
  • Videos in the about us section do not have matching captions. This fails WCAG 1.2.2 Captions (Prerecorded) (A).
  • Videos in the about us section do not have matching media alternatives. This fails WCAG 1.2.3 Audio Description or Media Alternative (Prerecorded) (A).
  • There are a variety of issues across the website where headings are not matched to those visually present, or lists are not used correctly for content and for navigation. Particularly with booking journeys there are several instances where instruction text or input labels are not correctly associated. This fails WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (A).
  • There are instances with the What’s on navigation and the Ticket booking page where information is only provided visually. This fails WCAG 1.3.3 Sensory Characteristics (A).
  • There are instances with the What’s on navigation and the Ticket booking page where information is only provided through colour differentiation. This fails WCAG 1.4.1 Use of Color (A).
  • There is a wide variety of text contrast issues across all areas of the website. This fails WCAG 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum) (AA).
  • Pages are wrapped in a metaviewport which can cause problems with magnification or resizing for some mobile users. This fails WCAG 1.4.4 Resize text (AA).
  • The ticket booking system contains an image of text without descriptive alternatives. This fails WCAG 1.4.5 Images of Text (AA).
  • The cart and checkout journey respond poorly to magnification and can stop higher magnification users from completing checkout. There are also some minor clipping issues with content elsewhere on the website. This fails WCAG 1.4.10 Reflow (AA).
  • There are a number of non-text contrast issues primarily with focus indication or icon controls. This fails WCAG 1.4.11 Non-text Contrast (AA).
  • Pages on the main website do not support text spacing adjustments but pages in the booking journey do. This fails WCAG 1.4.12 Text Spacing (AA).
  • The burger menu is not keyboard accessible. there are a variety of elements on the website which are not keyboard accessible including the burger menu, key aspects of the ticket booking journey, cookies controls, event filters and other sub navigation options. This fails WCAG 2.1.1 Keyboard (A).
  • The home page contains a carousel which autoscrolls without the ability to pause or stop the animation. This fails WCAG 2.2.2 Pause, Stop, Hide (A).
  • There is no skip to content function on the website. This fails WCAG 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks (A).
  • The ticket booking page does not have a descriptive page title. This fails WCAG 2.4.2 Page Titled (A).
  • The main navigation contains a number of blank links. Some pages also contain duplicate links, particularly pages that have cards or tile style layouts. This fails WCAG 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (A).
  • Because of the broken navigation, there are not alternate routes to browse all areas of the website. This fails WCAG 2.4.5 Multiple Ways (AA).
  • There are a number of focus indication problems with the main navigation as well as other content on pages and in ticket booking journeys. This fails WCAG 2.4.7 Focus Visible (AA).
  • The Cookie policy does not trap keyboard focus until a decision has been made. This is not massively impacting at standard magnification but at higher levels of magnification or on smaller screens the cookie policy banner visually obscures more content. This fails WCAG 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured (Minimum) (AA).
  • The burger menu does not have an accessible text name or announce its state. This fails WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (A).

If you find an issue that we have yet to identify, please contact us using one of the routes described in the ‘Feedback and contact information’ section of this statement.

Disproportionate burden

At this time, we have made no claims of disproportionate burden.

Content that’s not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

At this time, we have not identified any content that is not within scope of the accessibility regulations.

What we’re doing to improve accessibility

The Atkinson is committed to improve accessibility, online and in our building. We work with partners including Southport Access for Everyone (SAFE), StageTEXT and a dedicated team of inclusion volunteers.

Preparation of this accessibility statement

This statement was prepared on 24/02/2025. It was last reviewed on 24/02/2025.

This website was last tested on 24/02/2025 against the WCAG 2.2 standard. The test was carried out by All Able Ltd.

A representative sample of pages of the website were tested. Testing was composed of a mixture of manual, semi-automated and assistive technology testing.

Race Equality

We will implement a programme of self-assessment and monitor the diversity of artists engaged in our programming.

We are committed to changing our ways of working to support and celebrate diversity throughout our programming, and in our creative and cultural engagement.

All Atkinson staff will commit to Equalities and Diversity training.

The Atkinson will continue our commitment to support diversity in the acquisition of works for the permanent collection.

We will continue to undertake training to support the decolonialization of our collections.

Sefton Council – Equality & Diversity Policy

Joint statement – Arts and Culture in solidarity with Liverpool Against Racism (LAR)

On behalf of arts and culture organisations across Liverpool City Region, we welcome and support the LAR festival. Many of us are actively involved in the programme and are proud to be part of the stand that the City is making against racism, intolerance and hate.

We recognise the important role that creativity has to play in imagining an inclusive and equitable future, and are committed in the work we do to help realise that future through respecting and celebrating difference, speaking out against racism, and reflecting the diversity of our artists, participants, audiences and communities.

Find out about how members of LARC (Liverpool Arts Regeneration Consortium) and COoL (Creative Organisations of Liverpool) are working towards race equality and greater inclusion and diversity on the COoL website here.

Joint statement – Arts and culture organisations working towards race equality

LARC (Liverpool Arts Regeneration Consortium) and COoL (Creative Organisations of Liverpool) together represent 38 cultural organisations in the City Region. Both groups are committed to racial justice and to making meaningful change within their member organisations and in the work they do. We are now issuing the following shared statement.

We came together in 2021 to demand change following the murder of George Floyd. The words Black Lives Matter were echoed globally, and people of Liverpool were galvanised to commit to the work of ensuring that Black lives/communities, and the experiences of all those within our diverse communities, were fully valued and included. The urgency of this global human right had never been greater, and has been a catalyst for cultural organisations to go through a necessary process of self-assessment and change.

Black Lives Matter called for action that would bring about real structural change, not just words or performative social media posts. We are therefore reflecting on our own practices and policies of equality, diversity and inclusion. We acknowledge that harm has been done by our previous failings and inaction, and are working towards a more inclusive and representative future.

Change is continuous and there is still much to do if we truly want to achieve equity in a society that is impacted by institutional racism.

Ffestiniog Work Horses, Terence Tenison Cuneo (1907–1996). Atkinson Art Gallery Collection.