Veteran forced to leave Grantham pub for being on mobility scooter

An army veteran was left ‘embarrassed’ after being turned away from a town centre pub for being on his mobility scooter.

Ivor Thomas, 66, was told he could not bring his scooter into The Sir Isaac Newton, on the High Street, last month.

He said: “I went to the pub to meet my wife who was having lunch with a friend. As soon as I entered and headed towards the lift, the manager came straight over and said that he didn’t allow scooters inside the pub.”

Ivor, who served 22 years in the army, relies on his scooter to get about as he suffers with arthritis in his legs, back and ankles.

He added: “I can’t walk a single step without being in pain, but he didn’t even ask if I was disabled. He just said that he could go and buy a scooter if he wanted to.”

Ivor said that the incident has left him feeling "upset and unwanted."

He added: “It was a horrible experience. I just left the pub and told my wife that I had been kicked out when she came looking for me. In hindsight, I probably should have stuck to my guns and refused to leave, but I was in shock.”

The Journal contacted the manager at The Sir Isaac Newton, who said: “It is company policy. We have about seven or eight of our customers who use mobility scooters and are happy to leave them outside.

“The lift also only takes the weight of a standard wheelchair and not that of a motorised scooter.”