Portsmouth Dockyard - Part 6

On the 17th of May, I went to the Portsmouth Dockyard again. This time I visited the galleries. The first gallery that I visited was called Nelson Gallery. The Nelson Gallery was brilliant because it was spacious and there is lots of space to manoeuvre around, and it is wheelchair accessible.

I am pleased to say that most of the attractions were at a perfect height for me... I could see the whole of this attraction, which is pictured below. This attraction is showing figure people working. This made me extremely happy that I could see it.

There's one thing that could improve this attraction; it may be better if the models were placed lower down, and the window could be made longer, so it goes further down to the floor. This would allow people who are at different heights to see the attraction, whether they're low down or high up.

While I was making my way through the rest of the galleries, I noticed that it was becoming darker. I'm not sure why this was, but maybe it was meant to be atmospheric. I think that it really could do with some more light in most of the sections.

The next section had two screens, one large and one small. Both screens were displaying the same image, so it was a bit confusing where to look. I don't think that two screens were necessary at all. It would be better if there was only one screen. I think that there was the same image being displayed on each screen, so why have two? There was no sound track for the video which meant that it wasn't accessible to people with visual impairments. I think that it would be better if the video had sound, rather than two screens. This would make it more accessible to people who are visually impaired.

All of the galleries were interactive, which is fantastic for visitors, especially those who find it easier to learn more by doing things, rather than reading and looking at things.

While I was looking around the museum, I noticed that there was a red button on one of the attractions. I'd never thought that I'd say this, but this button was a little bit low for me. If it was a couple of inches higher, I think it would be at a perfect height for me.

In one area of the museum, there was a little interactive screen with a montage of lots of different images of objects and people. You can find out about each image by touching them. When you touch the images, information appears on the screen. In my opinion, this screen is too busy, and it looks messy. This could be difficult for some people to navigate around because they might struggle to press the images, and they may not be able to see the images. I think it may be better if the images were in some kind of order. It could be better if it talked to you as well. This would help people with visual impairments.

I came across a big interactive screen, there were lots of boats on a blue background, presumably water. I found it difficult to see this because it was at the wrong angle for me. I know that this could be quite difficult to do, but I think that it would be better if the screen was angled, instead of being flat.

There were barrels, filled with scents that you could smell. On the top barrel, there was some information written in white text on a red background with some diagrams. I found this quite difficult to see because of the white on red contrast. I think that the main reason as to why I couldn't see it was because the text was too small.

On some of the barrels, there were information boards hanging from pieces of string. The text was a good size, but to read it, you have to hold the boards up. Some people, like me, are not able to hold them up. With that in mind, I think that it would be better if the boards were fixed to the barrels.

I was pleased to see that there was a hearing loop on a couple of the attractions for people to switch their hearing aids onto the 'T' setting to help them hear what is being said in the recording. Although, some people can't press buttons, but I'm not sure they could improve this.

In another section of this museum, there was a screen, an information board, a set of headphones, and some leaflets. There is only one issue here; there are buttons that you have to press. I can't press these buttons at all because they are too small. I'm not sure how they would make this more accessible, apart from making the buttons bigger. Also, I think that the text could be bigger as well. Furthermore, some people may struggle to keep the headphones on. It may be better if there was a speaker instead of the headphones.

After that, I went into another section that had different types of missiles. In that section there was a screen where you could find out information. To play the video, you have to press a small, red button. The screen and button were at decent heights for me, although this may not be alright for some. I think this could be improved by adding a sensor in front of the screen to enable the video to play when people are in front of the screen.

In another section, there was a structural model of a ship. There were buttons by each bit of information about the ship. These buttons turned little lights on that corresponded with the specific sections of the ship. At first, I couldn't see the lights coming on, so I thought it was broken. Then I noticed some tiny, faint lights. I was disappointed with this because I was expecting larger lights. It would make it better if the lights were bigger and brighter. One last thing that I need to mention is that this attraction is completely inaccessible to people who have visual impairments. I would suggest having sound on this, explaining where the different parts are.

In another section, there was an machine that makes Morse Code sounds. To hear these sounds, you have to put headphones on and press a button. There were two issues with this; I couldn't keep the headphones on very well due to my involuntary movements, and the second issue was the fact that I couldn't press the button. I have a suggestion which might work better: I think that they should be able to install a speaker, instead of having the headphones.

I went into the new Horrible Histories section. I had heard this advertised on the telly a few weeks ago, and I love Horrible Histories, so I thought that I would go in to visit. This was themed about the 'Putrid Pirates'. Even though this was geared towards children, I thought that it was great! There were large models of pirate ships. Anyone can get onto these as the ships had ramps going up into them. The ships were a good size as well, meaning that people with mobility aids can get onto them and move around.

In the Horrible Histories exhibit, there was a stamp machine on top of a barrel. I tried this out, but it was a bit low down for me. I understand that this is for children, so it didn't really bother me as such.

Near by was a screen and a camera where people can have their photo taken to turn them into a pirate. In front of this was a step; this step was fixed to the floor; people in wheelchairs are unable to get close enough. Also, the camera was too high for me, and it will probably be too high for other people in wheelchairs as well.

In the Horrible Histories section, there was a soft play type of area... In this area, there was some objects hidden under different shapes; the shapes were different sea creatures. To reveal the objects, you have to lift these sea creatures up. The idea of having this is fantastic because it's calming and fun for children, but it may not be accessible for everyone. The reason why I think this is because some people may not be able to lift these flaps due to weakness, lack of control, or if they're in a wheelchair, they might not be able to reach. I think that the accessibility of this could be improved by adding loops onto each of the sea creature flaps and providing different length poles with hooks on the end. I realise that this may not be accessible to everyone because some people can't hold poles and control them.

On my way out, I saw a square of timber (wood) in a see-through display in the floor. I think that it was just there for people to look at and see what timber looks like, but I'm not sure because there was no information that I saw.

Thank you for reading this post, and I hope you have enjoyed it. I hope you come back next time. Bye for now.