Cerys said she was asked for ID when she tried to enter the club in Manchester (Picture: Cerys Fletcher / MEN Media)
A woman with epilepsy says she has been the victim of ‘discrimination’ after she was refused entry to a bar for a birthday party.
Cerys Fletcher, from Bury, says she was barred from entering the Peaky Blinders bar in Manchester city centre on New Year’s Day as she could not produce an acceptable ID.
Cerys, 21, has epilepsy so cannot hold a driving licence – meaning she uses a Validate UK ID card, an alternate card used to prove ID.
The bar says Cerys’ party-of-nine were informed of its ID policy when they booked the table – and forked out £90 for a deposit.
But on arrival Cerys was turned away by a doorman, who said she didn’t have any valid ID.
Cerys was out with a group of friends in Manchester (Picture: Cerys Fletcher / MEN Media)
She told the Manchester Evening News: ‘I have had problems like this in the past, but not as disgusting as this.
She added: ‘I told him that this was discrimination. I cannot get it out of my head.’
Cerys says half of the party were asked for ID by the doorman when they arrived, and
‘I handed him my ID and he glanced at it, and he said we do not accept this,’ she continued. ‘He said it’s not a legal ID. The ID has everything on it that provisional does, but it doesn’t have my address.
‘I’ve got my bank cards out and a bright yellow slip of paper. That says I’m epileptic with my name and date of birth on.
‘He still would not accept it.’
Due to Cerys’ medical condition, she cannot have a driving licence – either full or provisional – so the Validate scheme was her best option when she turned 18 a few years ago.
More: News
She added: ‘I’m not allowed a provisional licence, I did not have a passport on me, I have been in pubs and bars in Manchester and they’ve accepted it.
‘This time, because I’ve had problems in the past with it, I knew it was a government issued ID.
‘I walked off because I was so upset, my friends were not angry and my boyfriend asked about why [it wasn’t accepted] and he called him a c**t. [Two people in my group] spoke to management and they just said we could not come in, end of.’
Eventually, Cerys and her mates found another bar to celebrate the birthday, but she says she feels like she ‘ruined’ the event. In response, Peaky Blinders’ management stood by its Challenge 25 ID policy.
They also said they issued the group a full refund for the £90 deposit they paid.
Do you have a medical condition and have been refused entry into a nightclub for the same reason in the past? Do you have a story about how you feel you’ve been discriminated against?
Please contact our reporter Liam Coleman on [email protected]
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Cerys has epilepsy and claims she was ‘discriminated’ against for not having the correct ID.
