Accessibility

First Metropolitan United Church has made renovations to improve accessibility of most of the church's spaces. We are committed to assisting those with special needs in taking part in all our church activities.

Mobility Needs 

Accessible parking slots are available in the parking area on Balmoral Road. The Balmoral entrance to the building is barrier-free. There is an elevator accessing the second floor and a universal access washroom on each floor. All rooms where presentations and workshops will be held are barrier-free, except the Sanctuary balcony and Room 223. In the Sanctuary, there are a number of seats reserved for those using walkers and wheelchairs.

Hearing Needs

First Met has a LISTEN hearing assistance system. The equipment used is a 1) a stethoscope, which means the person is required to remove their hearing aids and 2) a loop-type, which means the device goes over the head and the person is required to have a T-bar in their own hearing aids.

Each type of device plugs into a power transmitter which the church supplies. Please ask the Greeter for assistance if you need seating close to the front in order to lip-read.  

Visual Needs

We produce large-print versions of all orders of service for those with visual needs. The use of PowerPoint presentations has largely eliminated the use of handouts, though an occasional speaker may use them. Large print versions may be made available provided we have advance notice. Special seating can also be arranged to make it easier to read video screens.

Environmental Sensitivities

First Metropolitan is a smoke-free, scent-free church. This policy extends to the use of flowers for decorating the church. However, we rely on the goodwill of congregation members and guests to comply with this policy.

Special Dietary Needs

We do our best to accommodate the needs of guests with restricted diets or medical food allergies. At refreshment breaks, special muffins and cookies are available from a special table for those with gluten, dairy, peanut and tree nut intolerances and restricted diets.

Look for the sign when going for refreshments. First Met is a nut-free church: please do not bring lunches or snacks which include peanuts or tree nuts to the church.