Designed for living

By Andrew Lowndes, Sales Manager, Pressalit Care plc

The provision of specialist bathroom facilities in public places has been brought to the top of the development agenda, thanks to guidance such as the Disability Equality Duty, the updated BS8300:2009 – “Design of buildings and their approaches to meet the needs of disabled people”, and the Changing Places campaign.

There are currently some ten million people living in the UK with a disability, and each of these people has a right to have access to facilities that meet their needs, whether at school or college, or indeed in a shopping centre or airport. The provision of suitable toilet and bathroom facilities in a public place that enable users to maintain their dignity and benefit from increased independence, along with appropriate provision for those requiring assistance is central to this approach.

The provision of hygiene rooms, care suites, accessible toilets and shower facilities for new build and refurbishment projects within the education sector falls clearly within this requirement, and is of particularly relevance when it comes to Building Schools for the Future. We are seeing the installation of well designed, accessible bathroom facilities increasingly specified within this type of project.  

This is due in great measure to the introduction of the Disability Equality Duty which came into effect in December 2006 in England Scotland and Wales. This ensures that public bodies, including schools and colleges, are proactive in ensuring that disabled people are treated fairly.

The installation of suitable hygiene rooms or care suites provide students with the required equality of opportunity as stated in this Duty and planning them into refurbishment or new build projects fulfils this proactive approach to disability equality www.changing-places.org/install_a_ toilet/policy_and_legal/disability_ equality_duty.aspx

So what is a suitable bathroom facility? BS8300:2009 describes a Changing Places facility as a “combined toilet, shower and changing room for use by people with complex and multiple disabilities who require the help of up to two assistants.”  It states that “any larger building where the public have access in numbers, or where visitors might be expected to spend longer periods of time, is a suitable venue for a Changing Places facility.”

It recommends in fact that such a facility should be provided in buildings such as educational and health establishments, major transport termini, motorway services, shopping centres, sport and leisure facilities, and civic and cultural buildings.

Where every user of such a bathroom has the potential to have widely differing needs, the dependence on the effectiveness of a product is particularly important. This is indeed relevant in a school environment where user requirements can change on a regular basis – one student may be independently mobile and need facilities close at hand, while the next may be in a wheelchair and need the assistance of a carer, where more space is therefore required for manoeuvrability.

To find the perfect balance between functionality and aesthetics in the product development process, an in-depth knowledge of what is expected of a product is absolutely essential.

At Pressalit Care we believe that to achieve this flexibility you need to look beyond the standard solution.  To create a well-functioning bathroom is a complex task that requires in-depth knowledge of the user’s situation. All our bathroom solutions aim to provide better living conditions for people with limited mobility and provide their carers with better working conditions. And we also believe that these solutions should provide a lasting improvement tailored to the physical surroundings.

Maintaining close contact with industry professionals in the education sector, architects, and individual users who give us their first hand opinions of the strengths and weaknesses of our products, have enabled us to approach our solutions with a great deal of practical and theoretical experience.  With over thirty years experience of producing carefully designed accessible bathroom products for hygiene rooms, toilet and shower facilities, our range of ergonomic washbasins and nursing benches are perfectly suited to meet the requirements of BS8300:2009 and Changing Places facilities.

Furthermore, our desire to provide maximum flexibility, and looking beyond the standard solution, is enhanced with our innovative track system which enables elements within the bathroom, such as the washbasin, shower fitting and controls, as well as arm supports and even shelving products where fitted, to be adjusted horizontally. The track system allows the position of the products to be reconfigured quickly and easily to provide access for a wheelchair user, or space for a carer to work in comfort.  The horizontal and vertical track solution enables elements in the bathroom to be positioned appropriately for whoever needs them, when they need them.

Importantly, we aim to provide long-term solutions designed and produced to the highest standards, that meet best practice and offer value for money. We recognise the needs of architects, specifiers and providers to meet the demands of current legislation and with our free design service we help our customers to reduce the need for further adaptations or reconfigurations by future-proofing the bathroom. 

www.pressalitcare.co.uk
uksales@pressalitcare.com
Tel: 0844 8806950