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Public Petitions Committee, 08 Sep 2009

08 Sep 2009 · S3 · Public Petitions Committee

Item of business

New Petitions

Changing Places Toilets (PE1270)

Linda Burke (PAMIS): Watch on SPTV

I thank the committee for giving me the opportunity to speak to it about the need for more changing places toilets in Scotland. I will begin with some background information about my circumstances.My husband and I look after our 30-year-old daughter, Jenny, at home. I work full time; my husband is retired, but is involved in all aspects of caring for Jenny, as I am. I have been a parent member of PAMIS, which focuses on people with multiple or complex disabilities, for around 15 years.The term "complex disabilities" is used for a range of conditions. People with complex disabilities can have severe neurological and sensory damage, often accompanied by physical disabilities. Jenny had a brain haemorrhage shortly after she was born; as a result, she has severe learning difficulties and very little speech, and she uses a wheelchair to get about. She will always need to rely on other people for her personal care and to help her to live a full and complete life. All that sounds a bit negative, but Jenny is an extremely engaging and sociable person. She has a great sense of humour, and she loves music, shopping and just being out and about.Jenny attended a special school until she was about 19; she now attends an adult resource centre five days a week. Facilities vary from centre to centre, but staff take personal care requirements for clients very seriously. However, because changing facilities are centre based, any activities that she does outwith the centre are time limited to a couple of hours.When Jenny was young, all of us used to be able to go out to the beach for the whole day, visit relatives or go on holidays. However, now that she is an adult, we can no longer lift her without the right equipment. The lack of suitable changing facilities in the community has had a huge impact on her life; in fact, it has had a huge impact on everything that we can do as a family.Most people I know think that standard disabled toilets—I prefer to call them accessible toilets—are suitable for anyone with a disability, but that is simply not the case. Accessible toilets are totally unsuitable for people such as Jenny. For example, Jenny cannot transfer herself independently from her wheelchair. Our choices are limited to staying at home, only going out for a few hours—and not going too far away from home—or only going out for the day to places where there is a changing places loo.PAMIS and a range of other organisations have been campaigning for changing places toilets for more than 15 years. The toilets are not complicated, high tech or difficult to design. The basic requirements are: plenty of clean, safe space with room for two carers, a height-adjustable bench, a tracking hoist, a centrally placed toilet and a non-slip floor. I do not think that that is a lot to ask for, and it would make the difference between people being stuck at home and their being able to get out and about and do the things that most people take for granted. Changing places toilets are not only for people with complex disabilities such as Jenny; they are for anyone who cannot self-transfer to a toilet. Standard accessible loos simply do not have enough space to allow a carer or carers to work safely. On 3 September the new British standard 8300:2009 was adopted for changing places toilets, and it was launched here in the Scottish Parliament with a number of MSPs attending. BS 8300:2009 sets out the design standards for changing places toilets in public buildings and venues, and it has been drawn up with the help of architects, planners and carers. Most important, the new British standard recognises the rights of severely disabled people to be able to use the loo like everyone else.Providing public toilets is a local authority responsibility, and every authority in Scotland currently provides toilets with standard disabled access. However, very few of them provide changing places toilets. Some local authorities have taken the issue on board. For example, Dumfries and Galloway has three changing places toilets, with three more planned.Provision is far from universal, however. Nationwide, only 10 local authorities have changing places toilets. According to a recent survey by the Learning Disability Alliance Scotland, one local authority said that such toilets were only for "extreme types". Given that, according to estimates in a University of Dundee study, 25,000 people with disabilities in Scotland would benefit from such facilities, that seems a very odd thing for a group of decision makers to say.I am happy to report that the Scottish Parliament has a fully accessible loo, but I would like members to note that the facility came about only as a result of lobbying by PAMIS.We lodged our petition because we want your help: help in encouraging all local authorities to live up to their responsibilities under equality legislation; help in making changing places toilets available throughout the whole of Scotland; help for thousands of people throughout Scotland who are stuck at home unable to access their community because of a lack of suitable facilities such as those that most people take for granted; and help for Jenny, who would like to be able to spend a whole day at the seaside instead of just having an ice cream at the local cafe and then having to go home again.

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Public Petitions Committee, 08 Sep 2009

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