Many cinemas have step-free access and wheelchair spaces, but a trip can still need another person for help finding a seat, reaching the washrooms or leaving in an emergency. The CEA Card, run for the UK Cinema Association (UKCA), lets a disabled person bring one companion free. The UKCA states that people with limited mobility are among those the scheme is intended to help. This guide follows the CEA Card website’s own terms and frequently asked questions. It covers the card, not a cinema’s separate wheelchair or scooter space policy, which varies by venue; the site’s guide to mobility scooters and the Equality Act explains the wider access rights.
What the card gives you
The CEA Card entitles the holder to one free ticket for a person who provides assistance. The holder must buy a full-price ticket for the same performance, film and auditorium in a single transaction. The terms say the free ticket assumes the companion can help, with examples such as moving around the venue and taking a seat, leaving in an emergency, using the washrooms and buying tickets or refreshments.
The card is printed with the holder’s name and photograph, not the companion’s, so a different parent, relative, friend or care worker can accompany the holder each time. There is no limit to the number of uses while the card is valid. It is not an extra entry right: the terms say use is subject to programming and cinema capacity like any paying customer, and the card cannot be combined with another scheme offered by a cinema operator, though vouchers of comparable value may count at the operator’s discretion.
Who is eligible
The UKCA terms say a person aged over 5 is eligible if they need to be accompanied in cinemas because of the effect of their disability. Applicants can show this by providing evidence of receiving one of these awards:
- Disability Living Allowance;
- Attendance Allowance;
- Personal Independence Payment;
- Adult or Child Disability Payment (Scotland);
- Pension Age Disability Payment (Scotland); or
- Armed Forces Independence Payment.
Alternatively a Severely Sight Impaired or Sight Impaired registration qualifies. Applicants who do not have these can still apply, and the application is considered individually. The terms add that a Blue Badge, Disabled Person’s Railcard, Freedom Pass, Universal Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, another access card or an appointment letter are not accepted as automatic proof.
Cost, validity and applying
The CEA Card website says there is a £6.50 fee, which covers running the scheme, the website, application processing and producing the card. The card is valid for one year from issue, and a full new application, with the fee, is needed each year; the terms say having held a card before does not guarantee a renewal. The same applies to a lost or damaged card.
Applicants must send or upload evidence, a recent photograph that is a true likeness, and payment. The website says a correctly completed application takes up to 10 working days after payment is received. Someone may apply on another person’s behalf with their explicit consent and proof in the cardholder’s name. People aged 16 or over apply for themselves; for children aged 5 to 16, a parent or guardian with parental responsibility applies. The website states that qualifying documents are purged 14 days after the card is issued.
Limits and cinema discretion
Participation is a decision for each cinema. The terms say a cinema may decline to honour a card or may keep it where it believes it is being misused, and the website states that approximately 90 per cent of cinemas accept the card. The card is non-transferable, and a cinema may ask for additional identification. A cinema also keeps the right to judge whether an accompanying person can assist and to refuse the free ticket where it considers that appropriate; the UKCA recognises the role of young carers and says cinemas act at their own discretion.
It is expected that the holder will be accompanied whenever the card is used to obtain a free ticket. If two cardholders attend together, one cannot use the other’s free ticket, and a full-price ticket must be bought for each complimentary ticket.
What a cinema must still arrange
The CEA Card website is explicit that the card is not mandatory. The terms describe it as one way in which a cinema may make a reasonable adjustment under the Equality Act 2010, and the home page says cinemas still need to provide reasonable adjustments whether or not a person has a card. Such requests should be raised with the venue directly. The UKCA says cinemas that do not accept the card must still make reasonable adjustments.
Problems with the scheme, such as limits placed on use of a card or the actions of a participating operator, can be raised with CEA Card by email at [email protected] or by post to CEA Card, PO Box 199, Deeside, CH5 9BW.
FAQs
Does the card reserve a wheelchair or scooter space?
No. The CEA Card scheme concerns the companion ticket; the UKCA says other adjustments should be raised with the venue directly.
Is the card the same as a Blue Badge or Railcard?
No. The terms state that a Blue Badge or Disabled Person’s Railcard is not accepted as automatic proof of eligibility.
Can the companion use the card?
No. The card is non-transferable and only the named cardholder may use it.
The bottom line
The CEA Card is a low-cost way for someone who needs help at the cinema to bring one companion free, using proof such as a PIP or Attendance Allowance award. It lasts a year, costs £6.50 and is accepted by approximately 90 per cent of cinemas, but each cinema decides whether to take part. It does not replace a cinema’s duty to make reasonable adjustments, so access needs for a scooter or wheelchair are best raised with the venue before the visit. This is general information, not legal advice.
Sources
- Welcome to the CEA Card website (ceacard.co.uk)
- CEA Card: frequently asked questions (ceacard.co.uk)
- CEA Card: terms and conditions (ceacard.co.uk)