Kingkraft happy supporters of the Changing Places Campaign

Imagine you are out and about, doing a bit of shopping or having a family day out at the zoo and suddenly you are desperate for the toilet. How easy is it for you to find one that is accessible to use? Very. Well what if you are disabled? It becomes much more difficult as you need to manoeuvre a wheelchair or use changing facilities and many public toilets are just not up to the standard that is required. That is now shifting thanks to the Changing Places Consortium Campaign.

There are thousands of people in the UK that have profound and multiple learning disablities and require enough space and the correct facilities in order to enjoy a day out knowing that their needs are catered for. Changing Places facilities, which cater for around a quarter of the UK's population, are different to the standard disabled loos. They are equipped with a height adjustable, adult-sized changing bench with a tracking hoist, or mobile version if this is not possible, to help people out their wheelchair and onto the bench and vice versa. They also provide enough space for the disabled person and up to two carers which prevents them being changed on a dirty bathroom floor. A fully functioning disabled toilet with space either side for the carers with a curtain to provide privacy is also present. The facility is extremely clean and hygienic with paper towels wide enough to cover the whole of the changing table with large bins for the waste. There is also a non-slip floor to prevent any falls and skids that could occur and cause damage.

Although the amount of facilities are increasing there are still not enough available to cater for the people who really need them. We at Kingkraft Ltd are very happy to say that we are big supporters of the campaign and have helped install Changing Places facilities in many areas all around the UK. Some are detailed below:

• Chester Zoo - Jubilee toilets: changing table, hoist and wash basin
• Warrington Bus Interchange - Hoist
• Nottingham Potter Centre - Shower Changer
• Ilkeston Co-Op - Hoist and wash basin
• Leeds HEART - Hoist and mobile changing table
• Lancaster YMCA - Mobile changing table

There are many more centres which we have helped in providing Changing Places toilets and we look forward to helping out with many more in the future. The campaign is aiming to provide facilities in all public areas across the UK.

For more information on the campaign please visit their website at www.changing-places.org