Disabled access to The British Consulate-General, Chicago  
 
The Foreign & Commonwealth Office and the British Consulate-General, Chicago are keen to ensure that their buildings and services are fully accessible to disabled members of the public. Wherever possible, we have made our buildings and services accessible. Sometimes, however, this is not possible due to security or other restrictions. In these situations we will endeavour to provide a service or access to a building in an alternative way to ensure equality of access for disabled people. To assist disabled visitors, we have set out below details of disabled access at this Consulate-General. We hope this information is helpful.

General physical access

Primary disabled access is through the breezeway doors on Michigan Avenue at ground level, which leads into the lobbies of both the North and South buildings. Access at this level is free of stairways or steps.

Access to the Consulate-General is through the breezeway door on the South side of the building at 400 North Michigan Avenue. Visitors should report to the British Consulate-General security desk, and then take the elevator to the 13th floor. Visitors who need special assistance should notify the Security Guard.

If for any reason the South breezeway door is blocked, visitors should go into the North lobby, take the elevator to the 3rd floor, cross over on the connecting hall to the South Tower, and take the elevator to the 13th floor.

All floor coverings are safe and even within the building. Handrails are available within the elevators and in the bathrooms. Doors are accessible to all users. The office has good lighting.

Special Note For Visa Applicants: There is no need to make a visa application in person at the Office. All Visa applicants must process their applications electronically using our Visa4UK website and submit via mail, courier or at the dropbox facility at our security desk. All follow-up interviews can be conducted via the telephone. There is no requirement for an office visit to process an application. Visa information may be found here

Bathroom Facilities

The British Consulate-General offers bathroom facilities that are accessible to wheelchair users or those with limited physical mobility. They are located within the office on the 13th floor of the Wrigley Building.

Parking

The British Consulate-General is located in the Wrigley Building. The Wrigley Building does not offer public parking facilities. However, there are public parking facilities available near to the office which have full transfer spaces for wheelchairs and disabled access. The nearest suitable public parking facility is in the Nordstrom Building, located on the Northwest corner of Illinois Street and Rush Street.

Emergency/Evacuation Procedures

In the event of an emergency or evacuation of the office, the Wrigley Building has nominated fire wardens for each floor who would assist in getting the disabled person to a place of refuge, which is normally the stairwell. The Chicago Fire Department is responsible for assisting with the evacuation of disabled persons.

All emergency signs within the Wrigley Building are available in Braille. An audible alarm will sound to notify visually-impaired staff or visitors of the evacuation.

Strobe lights are activated to notify deaf or hard of hearing staff/visitors of an evacuation.

Telephone facilities

There are no public telephone facilities within the office.

Access for Visually-Impaired Visitors

Guide dogs are welcome within the Wrigley Building and the Consulate-General. Emergency signs are available in Braille.

Access for Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing Visitors

Unfortunately, the British Consulate-General does not offer hearing loops, Minicom/textphones, sign language or signing interpretation facilities. Hearing dogs are welcome.

Contact us

If you need to visit us or use our services and feel that they may be inaccessible to you, please contact our Management Officer, on 312 970 3806, who will try to find an alternative way of providing access for you.