Mum slams Milton Keynes theme park over disability dispute

The mum of a disabled three-year-old says she was left 'humiliated' by staff at a theme park when they argued with her about the height of her wheelchair-bound son.

Sophie Figg, 24, says the row was over whether her son Harrison could enter Gulliver’s Land, in Newlands, for free.

The Bletchley-based mum claims she had to hang her son against a wall to measure him, as little Harrison cannot stand up due to his disability.

Gulliver’s Land has disputed the course of the events, but has invited Sophie to a meeting to discuss their ‘commitment to equality’.

Harrison suffers from septo-optic dysplasia, which means he is blind and unable to stand because of development abnormalities.

Sophie told the Citizen: “We went with my sister, her two children, and a friend.

“My sister’s two children went in and were under 90cm,but the girl behind the desk then asked us to measure Harrison.

“Eventually I had to hang him up against this wall, but they still didn’t seem satisfied because he couldn’t stand up all the way.

“Eventually the area manager came down to the gates, and after about an hour we were let in.

“My son doesn’t really know what’s going on, but I felt humiliated in front of everyone else.”

Sophie has now set up an online petition calling for staff to receive better training.

Gulliver’s disputed the turn of events, but said: “We have a proud history of catering to disabled guests. We reached out immediately to invite Sophie to come back and discuss her experience with senior management.”

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