1 September 2009

Celebrating 'Changing Places - Changing Lives' success

Photo call - 1-3pm, Wednesday September 2nd,
Committee Room 1, Scottish Parliament
Shona Robison MSP and Jackie Baillie MSP will join charity workers in celebrating the success of the `Changing Places - Changing Lives’ campaign

PAMIS, the charity which works with people with profound learning disabilities and their carers, is holding a photocall and drinks reception at the Scottish Parliament from 1-3pm on Wednesday 2nd September in Committee Room 1.

Jackie Baillie MSP will be chairing the event and Shona Robison MSP, Minister for Public Health, will give the opening speech.

The charity are celebrating that the new British Standards BS8300:2009 Design of buildings and their approaches to meet the needs of disabled people, includes a standard for Changing Places toilets. This will ensure that all newly built public buildings will include a Changing Places toilet. These toilets are larger than a standard disabled loo with enough space for two carers to work, and include a height-adjustable changing bench and a hoist.

“The inclusion of Changing Places Toilets in the new British Standard is a huge step forward and will mean that these toilets will automatically be included in the design of new public buildings,” said Loretto Lambe, Director of PAMIS. “This will make a dramatic difference to the lives of thousands of people with a range of disabilities across the UK who need access to these facilities. Without Changing Places toilets their lives are severely restricted.”

The `Changing Places - Changing Lives’ campaign (www.changing-places.org.uk) has been led by PAMIS and MENCAP, with the support of several other organisations. The campaign has been working for several years to get these standards included in the building regulations. Without Changing Places toilets people with profound and multiple learning disabilities, as well as people with physical disabilities such as spinal injuries, multiple sclerosis & muscular dystrophy are forced to stay at home or their family carers have to resort to changing them on dirty toilet floors.

The Changing Places campaign is aiming to ensure that there is at least one public toilet built to the Changing Places standard in every town centre with a population greater than 15,000 and within each new public building such as shopping centres, concert halls, railway stations etc.

A petition with over 2,500 signatures will be presented to the petitions committee on September 8th by Linda Burke, a family carer.

PAMIS is based at the University of Dundee. The charity aims to ensure that:

• people with profound and multiple learning disabilities are valued both as individuals and in the contribution they make to the community
• they should receive all the support needed to realise their full potential
• their right to a full life shaped by personal choice, abilities and needs underlies all provision and policy affecting their lives
• the knowledge and experience of family carers is recognised, and that their views are fully taken into account in service development

NOTES TO EDITORS

Case history
“As parents of David, a registered blind 19 year old with profound and multiple learning disabilities and a wheelchair user, we have experienced the difficulties of trying to shop in town centres and cope with our son’s personal care needs; particularly since he has become an adult and too large to use baby changing facilities. It is difficult and stressful enough to go shopping with a disabled person without the constant worry of having to hurry because there is nowhere to take them to the toilet or to change them. If there is not an accessible toilet with a changing bench, hoist and enough room for two people to assist David’s transfer and toileting needs, we have to go home as we are not prepared to lie David down on a dirty public toilet floor.”

Not having suitable provision can lead to more isolation for families. It is estimated that there are over 200,000 people in the UK that require these facilities.

www.dundee.ac.uk/pamis

For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
Head, Press Office
University of Dundee
Nethergate Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384910
E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk