Terms of service
These Terms and Conditions apply when you buy admission tickets, gift vouchers or merchandise through the Kielder Observatory website.
Kielder Observatory is operated by Kielder Observatory Astronomical Society (KOAS), a registered charity (charity number 1153570), whose address is Kielder Observatory, Black Fell, Kielder, Hexham, NE48 1EJ. You can contact us at admin@kielderobservatory.org or by post at The Beacon, Beaufront Park, Anick Road, Hexham, NE46 4TU.
‘Kielder Observatory’ is the building and observing site operated by Kielder Observatory Astronomical Society. In these Terms and Conditions, ‘we’, ‘us’ and ‘our’ mean Kielder Observatory Astronomical Society unless stated otherwise.
Where merchandise is sold by Kielder Observatory Services Ltd (KOSL), a company registered in England and Wales (company number 09294853), KOSL will be identified as the seller at the point of order. Where an order is fulfilled by KOSL or a third-party supplier on behalf of another seller, the seller identified at the point of order remains responsible for the contract.
These Terms and Conditions do not apply to tickets bought directly through the Twice Brewed Inn website. Twice Brewed Inn bookings are subject to Twice Brewed Inn’s own booking terms.
Where we offer a relocation to Twice Brewed Inn, this will be managed by us as an alternative arrangement for the original Kielder Observatory booking.
Please read these Terms and Conditions before booking. By completing your order, you agree to these Terms and Conditions.
Nothing in these Terms and Conditions affects your statutory rights, which cannot lawfully be excluded.
1. Your booking
Our astronomy sessions are timed public admission sessions to Kielder Observatory. They give visitors admission to the Observatory for an astronomy experience that may include use of the building, telescopes, observing facilities, presentations, tours and other activities linked to our charitable purposes.
When you book a ticket, it is your responsibility to check that the admission session, date, time, venue, ticket type and contact details are correct before completing your order
Tickets are valid only for the admission session, date, time and venue stated on the ticket, unless we agree otherwise or contact you to offer an alternative arrangement.
Tickets are not automatically transferable to another date, session, venue or person.
Please check carefully before booking that you have selected the correct venue. Kielder Observatory tickets sold through our website and Twice Brewed Inn tickets sold through the Twice Brewed Inn website are separate bookings and cannot automatically be transferred between systems.
We may refuse admission, or ask someone to leave, where there is a reasonable reason to do so. This may include unsafe, abusive, disruptive or inappropriate behaviour, failure to follow staff instructions, or failure to meet session age requirements.
Visitors must follow all reasonable instructions given by our staff, and must comply with any conditions linked to our premises licence, including any instructions given by staff about alcohol, safety, behaviour and restricted areas.
2. Age guidance and concessions
Some admission sessions have age guidance or age restrictions. Please check this before booking.
Where concession tickets are available, they are for under-16s and disabled visitors, unless the session page states otherwise. We may ask for reasonable evidence to support a concession claim, but we will not withhold a disability concession from a disabled visitor who is unable to provide formal evidence, and we will make reasonable adjustments where needed. Where a concession has been claimed and no reasonable basis for it is shown, we may ask you to pay the difference to the full price.
Children and young people must be supervised by a responsible adult at all times.
Assistance dogs are welcome, in line with our duties under the Equality Act 2010. Other animals are not permitted unless we agree this in advance.
3. Alcohol and licensed premises
Kielder Observatory is a licensed venue.
Alcohol may be available to buy at some sessions, subject to our premises licence, session arrangements and staff discretion. Alcohol is not included in your ticket unless this is clearly stated on the session booking page.
In line with the mandatory age-verification condition on our licence, we operate a Challenge 25 age-verification policy. If you appear to be under 25 you may be asked for valid proof of age before being served. We will refuse the sale or supply of alcohol where required by law, where valid proof of age is not provided, or where staff believe it would be inappropriate or unsafe to serve alcohol.
Visitors must not bring their own alcohol to Kielder Observatory unless we give written permission in advance.
We may refuse admission or ask a visitor to leave if their behaviour, including behaviour linked to alcohol or intoxication, creates a safety risk, disrupts the session, affects other visitors, or breaches our licence conditions.
4. Timed admission tickets and cancellation rights
Most Kielder Observatory tickets are for a specific session on a specific date and time. The statutory 14-day cancellation right for distance contracts does not apply to those tickets.
This does not affect any statutory rights that cannot lawfully be excluded.
5. Gift Aid on admission tickets
If you choose to add Gift Aid when buying an eligible ticket for admission to Kielder Observatory, we can claim additional money from HMRC through the Gift Aid scheme. This helps support our charitable work.
For eligible admission tickets, you may choose to pay the standard admission price or make a voluntary donation of at least 10% more than the standard admission price and receive the same right of admission. If you also make a valid Gift Aid declaration, we may claim Gift Aid on the qualifying payment.
Where the Gift Aid Admissions rules apply, we may claim Gift Aid on the full eligible admission payment, not only on the additional 10%.
For every £1 treated as a Gift Aid donation, we can claim an extra 25p from HMRC.
Gift Aid is only available where the admission payment and Gift Aid declaration meet HMRC requirements and may not be available for all ticket types or venues.
By checking the box to Gift Aid your order, you confirm that you understand that if you pay less UK Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax than the amount of Gift Aid claimed by all charities and CASCs on your donations in that tax year, it is your responsibility to pay any difference to HMRC.
6. Refunds and transfers
Subject to your statutory rights, we do not offer routine refunds where you are unable or choose not to attend for reasons relating to your own circumstances. This includes, for example, changing your mind, booking the wrong date or venue, booking too many tickets, arriving late or not attending.
Where possible, we may offer a transfer voucher if you contact us in advance. This is at our discretion and is subject to availability.
For bookings of up to 6 tickets, we will normally consider a transfer request if you give us at least 7 days’ notice.
For bookings of more than 6 tickets, we will normally require at least 14 days’ notice.
A transfer voucher will be valid for 12 months from the date of issue, and a £5 administration fee may be deducted from its value.
If the new session is more expensive than your original booking, you may need to pay the difference. If the new session is cheaper, we are not obliged to refund the difference unless required by law or agreed by us.
7. If we cancel, postpone or change a session
It may be necessary for us to cancel, postpone, relocate or change a session because of weather, road access, safety concerns, operational or administrative issues, staff or venue availability, equipment or power failure, or other circumstances that prevent us from delivering the session as planned.
If this happens, we will contact the booker using the contact details provided at the time of booking. This will usually be by email, so please check your email before travelling.
Where a session at Kielder Observatory cannot go ahead as planned, we may offer one or more of the following:
- relocation to another Kielder Observatory astronomy session, including a Kielder Observatory delivered astronomy session at Twice Brewed Inn Observatory, where available and appropriate
- a transfer voucher for a future visit
Twice Brewed Inn is a different venue from Kielder Observatory. We deliver astronomy sessions there throughout the year using dedicated facilities, which include a planetarium, classroom space, observatory, and astronomy equipment.
If you do not wish to accept a relocation or transfer voucher, we will consider the position in line with these Terms and Conditions, any statutory rights which cannot legally be excluded, and HMRC Gift Aid rules.
Under HMRC’s Gift Aid Admissions rules, an admission payment on which Gift Aid is claimed must not include a right to a full or partial refund. If a refund is required by law, we will make any necessary correction to our Gift Aid claim with HMRC.
8. Weather, observing and session content
Astronomy is weather-dependent. Cloud, rain, snow, wind, fog, moonlight or poor visibility may affect what can be observed.
Unless we cancel the session, tickets will not be refunded because of weather conditions or because particular stars, planets, aurorae, meteor showers or other astronomical objects are not visible.
We will make reasonable efforts to deliver the advertised session, but the exact content may vary depending on weather, sky conditions, safety, staffing, equipment, access and operational circumstances.
9. Travel, access and late arrival
Kielder Observatory is in a remote location. You are responsible for planning your journey, allowing enough travel time and checking your route before setting off.
Subject to your statutory rights, we are not responsible for individual travel disruption, road diversions, road closures, transport issues, signage issues, vehicle problems, traffic, accommodation costs, food costs, childcare costs or other expenses.
If a session goes ahead and you arrive late or do not attend, we are not obliged to refund, transfer or exchange your ticket.
Where a session is cancelled, postponed, relocated or changed because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, we are not responsible for travel, accommodation or other consequential costs you may incur, except where the law requires otherwise.
10. Gift vouchers
Gift vouchers are valid for 13 months from the date of purchase.
Gift vouchers cannot be exchanged for cash.
Gift vouchers can be used only for the tickets, products, venues or sales channels supported by our booking and till systems at the time of redemption. Please check our website or contact us if you are unsure before travelling or placing an order.
Any unused balance will remain available until the voucher expires.
After expiry, any unused balance will be retained by us and used to support our charitable work.
11. Merchandise bought online
This section applies to merchandise bought through the Kielder Observatory website.
For sections 11 to 13, references to ‘we’, ‘us’ and ‘our’ mean the seller identified at the point of order.
Some merchandise may be sold or fulfilled by Kielder Observatory Services Ltd, KOAS’s wholly owned trading subsidiary, or by third-party suppliers. Where this applies, this will be made clear as part of the order or fulfilment process.
Most online orders are dispatched within two working days and are sent by Royal Mail 2nd Class, Royal Mail Tracked 48 or courier, depending on the order. Dispatch times are estimates and are not guaranteed. If we cannot dispatch your order within a reasonable time, we will contact you.
Unless we agree a different delivery period with you, goods will be delivered without undue delay and no later than 30 days after the contract is made.
We cannot currently fulfil merchandise orders to international addresses. If an international order is placed, we will cancel and refund it.
12. Damaged, missing or faulty goods
If your order arrives damaged, please contact us as soon as possible and keep the item and packaging so we can assess the issue.
If an item is missing from your order, please contact us as soon as possible so that we can investigate and put this right.
If an item is faulty, not of satisfactory quality, not fit for purpose or not as described, please contact us promptly. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, you have a short-term right to reject the goods and receive a full refund if you notify us within 30 days of delivery. Alternatively, you may choose to request that we repair or replace the goods. If a repair or replacement is impossible, cannot be provided within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience to you, or is unsuccessful, you are entitled to a price reduction or the final right to reject the goods. We will provide the appropriate remedy in accordance with your statutory rights.
We may liaise with the supplier or manufacturer to help resolve the issue, but this does not affect your statutory rights against the seller identified at the point of order.
We do not offer refunds or replacements where the problem has clearly been caused by user damage, misuse, failure to follow product instructions, or normal wear and tear.
Replacements are subject to stock availability.
If you change your mind about a product bought online, you must tell us within 14 days of receiving it. Information about this right and a model cancellation form will be made available before you place your order and will also be provided with your order confirmation. You then have another 14 days to return it.
You are responsible for the cost of returning unwanted items unless the item is faulty, damaged, not as described, or we have agreed otherwise.
We will refund eligible returned items, together with the cost of our least expensive standard delivery option where required by law, within 14 days of receiving the returned item or receiving evidence that you have sent it back.
Items should be returned unused, with all original packaging and accessories where possible. You may inspect an item as you would in a shop, but we may reduce your refund if the item has been handled beyond what is necessary to inspect it.
Some items cannot be returned unless faulty. This may include personalised items, sealed items that are not suitable for return for health or hygiene reasons once unsealed, or other items excluded by law.
13. Drop-shipped items
Some specialist products may be sent directly from one of our suppliers, including First Light Optics Ltd.
Where this applies, we will share only the information needed to fulfil your order, such as your name, contact details and delivery address.
Your data will not be used by the supplier for marketing unless you opt in separately.
If you need to return a drop-shipped item, please contact us first so we can confirm the correct return process.
Your statutory rights are not affected because an item has been sent directly by a supplier.
14. Data and payment
Payments are processed through our payment provider, which handles your payment card details. We may have access to limited payment information, such as the last four digits of your card, where needed to identify a transaction.
We will use your personal data in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 to manage your booking, order, donation, Gift Aid declaration, customer service query, and any important changes affecting your booking or order. We rely on different lawful bases depending on why we are processing your data. We process booking, order and payment data to perform our contract with you. We keep Gift Aid records to comply with our legal obligations. We send marketing information where you have consented or where the law otherwise permits us to do so.
For more information, please read our Privacy Notice on our website.
15. Website content
We make reasonable efforts to keep the information on our website accurate and up to date, but information may change without notice.
Website content, images, branding and materials are owned by or licensed to us unless stated otherwise. You must not reproduce them without permission, except where permitted by law.
Our website may include links to other websites. We are not responsible for the content of external websites.
16. Liability
Nothing in these Terms and Conditions limits or excludes liability where it would be unlawful to do so, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, fraudulent misrepresentation, or breach of statutory rights which cannot legally be excluded.
Subject to this, we are responsible for loss or damage you suffer that is a foreseeable result of our breach of these Terms and Conditions or our failure to use reasonable care and skill. We are not responsible for loss or damage that was not foreseeable or that was not caused by our breach.
17. Governing law
These Terms and Conditions are governed by the laws of England and Wales.
Any dispute will be subject to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
18. Contact
If you have any questions or complaints, please contact us at admin@kielderobservatory.org, by post at The Beacon, Beaufront Park, Anick Road, Hexham, NE46 4TU, or by telephone on 0191 265 5510. We aim to resolve complaints directly.
If we cannot resolve your complaint to your satisfaction, alternative dispute resolution may be available through an accredited ADR provider. We are not obliged to use alternative dispute resolution. When we give you our final response to a complaint we cannot settle, we will tell you whether we are prepared to use it and provide the name and website of a provider who could deal with the matter.
