Securing facilities for all… for the future
A 40 YEARS-OLD BUILDING has retaken its place as the heart of its community with a major upgrade, including state-of-the-art toilet facilities for all.
Warminster Town Council has undertaken the project to strategically create one centre in which the Council’s core offices are based, and the only community facility in the town where meetings for up to 500 people or ‘sit-down’ functions for up to 250 people can be accommodated.
A key element of the refurbishment of Warminster Civic Centre to make it accessible to all is the inclusion of a Changing Places toilet, supplied and installed by Total Hygiene, sponsor of the Changing Places campaign.
The toilet features adequate space in the changing area for the user and up to two carers, a height adjustable adult sized changing bench and tracking/mobile hoist. Warminster Town Council has further included a Closomat Palma ‘wash and dry’ toilet with a touchsensitive switch. It looks like a conventional WC but with built-in douche and drier. Manufactured by Total Hygiene, the Closomat ensures the user is properly cleaned after toileting without them or their carer having to manually wipe with toilet tissue, thus ensuring greater independence and dignity for the user – however little manual strength they have – and improved hygiene for all.
Town clerk Heather Abernethie explained,
We have a high proportion of people with disabilities living in the town, or visiting. The redevelopment of the Civic Centre is about securing the future of community facilities for ALL the townspeople. The Changing Places toilet delivers a warm, clean environment, and importantly Total Hygiene’s equipment means it doesn’t look like a disabled facility, but an appropriate, practical yet stylish personal care room.
Since the launch of Changing Places campaign, sponsored by Total Hygiene, over 350 of the accessible toilets have been installed. In the past 12 months alone, over 100 have been opened in venues across the country, from museums to shopping centres and car parks.
