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A woman was told she couldn't enter a new Legoland attraction - because she had no kids with her.

Yvonne Radcliff, 74, had to turn around and go home after heading for a day out to Birmingham's new £7 million Legoland Discovery Centre.

She had set off from her home in Hall Green in the city to the new attraction which opened on Thursday.

But the Lego-loving pensioner had her plans for a day out shattered when a staff member told her that no adults could enter without a child.

Yvonne told Birmingham Live: “I couldn’t believe it.

"Adults make Lego, it’s wonderful. Yet I wasn’t allowed in because I didn’t have a kid with me. You couldn’t make it up really.

“I think Lego is fascinating. I’ve watched documentaries on TV and saw it was opening in town.

“I told my daughter I fancied a day out to see it, so I got on the train to Snow Hill and walked the rest of the way there.

“Once I got there, I walked in and a girl stopped me and said I wasn’t allowed in. She said it’s the rules - I must be accompanied by a child."

She added: “I was shocked and appalled to tell you the truth. It’s nonsense really.

“A family was in front of me so I said can I walk in with them as they had children, she just said ‘No, you’re a stranger’.

“You’d thought they’d take pity on a pensioner - and the kids aren’t off school yet.

“I just had to walk away and go back home.”

The Legoland Discovery Centre website states that “adults must be accompanied by children to enter Legoland Discovery Centre”.

The new venue is, however, staging an adult-only evening for Lego fans on July 11 between 5pm and 7pm.

In a detailed statement, a spokesman for Legoland said: “LEGOLAND Discovery Centre’s are not theme parks but small, indoor attractions specifically conceived and designed from a child’s perspective to provide safe and fun environments for families with children aged 3-10 to enjoy together.

“Many of the key features in the attraction therefore are not suitable or designed for the use of older children or grown adults of any ability - the soft play area, or some of the rides for example.

“In order to constantly maintain a welcoming environment in which to play, the Centre’s do not permit entry to any groups of adults, adult couples, or lone adults, regardless of race, gender or ability, who are not accompanied by a young child or children.

“Developed in discussion with our visitors, from our sites across the globe we believe this policy to be appropriate and practical for this particular attraction and its visitor profile.

“That said we recognise that the appeal of the LEGO brick uniquely crosses all barriers, and fans come in all ages and abilities.

“That is why we will be holding regular adult only evenings linked to every attraction in order to showcase specific attractions within the Centre, such as MINILAND; and including additional events for adults.

“As for discrimination, we do not accept that at all – this policy applies to all adults – of all abilities and gender – we do not discriminate.

“More than that we believe that the policy is both appropriate, given the age of our visitors, and practical, given the design and content of the attraction.”