Cargo container conversion boosts farm visits delight
Thinking ‘outside the box’ has meant a campaigner for special accessible toilets has enabled one attraction to be open to everyone …
Sarah Brisdion’s young son Hadley loves going to their local visitor attraction Longdown Activity Farm; but as Hadley suffers from cerebral palsy, trips are often cut short through lack of suitable toilet facilities. But no longer! Sarah worked closely with the farm owners Bryan and Dawn Pass to devise, raise funds for and equip an innovative solution - creation of a Changing Places hygiene facility in a former cargo container.
Sarah’s family and friends, and friends of the Activity Farm, converted the container, which has been equipped, by Britain’s leader in disabled toilet solutions Clos-o-Mat, with a WC, washbasin, privacy screen, height adjustable adult-sized changing bench and ceiling track hoist.
“Without the extra kit of a changing bench and hoist, I and millions of parents and carers like me, face either having to lay our loved one on the toilet floor, or cut our trip short. Changing Places are vital to our being able to spend time as a family in a way that families without disabled members take for granted,” explained Sarah.
“Bryan and Dawn appreciated how much Hadley loves visiting the farm, and also the impact his toilet needs had, but they didn’t have anywhere in a building they could adapt. Through my campaigning for Changing Places, I know Clos-o-Mat, and we all worked as a team to come up with an efficient, compliant solution - in the converted container!”
Changing Places toilets are ‘desirable’ in venues open to numbers of the public, and should be provided in addition to conventional wheelchair-accessible toilets. They give users more space - a minimum 12m² - and the equipment they need to hygienically deal with their personal care. The facility at the Farm is open to anyone registered disabled, and is one of the first of its kind in the New Forest area.
So far, over 800 Changing Places have been opened at venues throughout the UK.
Clos-o-Mat is the leading player in the supply and installation of Changing Places facilities. Its ability to deliver design advice, project management, supply, installation, commissioning and maintenance across the ambit of accessible toileting equipment means it is uniquely provide a reliable, single source for the whole process. Further, its website http://www.clos-o-mat.com is an essential reference point for anyone considering installing a Changing Places toilet, offering white paper, 2D and 3D CAD drawings, standard layouts, and video.
Ends
Clos-o-Mat
Tel: 0161 969 1199
Email: info@clos-o-mat.com
Original of this article here