Changing Places – Cadbury World

The location of the ‘Changing Places’ facility within the Cadbury world tour is in a corridor off to the entrance and the main check-in desk. I think the location of the facility is very good as means that people can use the facility before and after the tour, visitors with disabilities are also told that they can approach any member of staff at any point of the tour and can tell them they need to use the facility and they will be brought back to eat before returning to the tour.

On the door of the ‘Changing Places’ facility, there is the correct sign which is easily identifiable, and people can tell the difference between a standard disabled toilet and this facility. To reinforce the idea that only disabled guests with specific needs can use the facility, there is a radar key lock on the door. Guests can either use a radar key that they’ve brought from home or they can request it at the main desk, this way it monitors the issue closely and ensures proper use of the facility inside.

Moving inside the facility, I found that it was only slightly bigger to the size as any other toilet. There was plenty of room for me, my parent/carer and the equipment in the facilities but still it felt like a regular toilet. I like the idea of this as the person designing it was realistic in how much space is needed to enable all the equipment to be used in comfort but also wasn’t over exaggerated in more it needed to be.

Cleanliness is very important in any toilet facility particularly the public toilets. Within this facility, the cleanliness was very good, it showed that people have monitored it carefully to keep it as clean and his hygienic as possible for every use. This was good as disabled people who can transfer independently can sometimes be very unsteady on their feet and the dirtiness of the facility can add to their difficulties as it may cause them to slip due to the residue on the floor, it can also be very unpleasant for the occupant using the facility and it’s about common courteousness.

This facility has a full working hoist which moves across the whole of the bathroom, this is a great thing to do as it enables those with disabilities who have to use the ceiling hoists to be able to get to the pieces of equipment with ease. Though it was working at the time of my visit, I would suggest when you pre-book your disability assistance for the tour, ask the assistant on the phone whether she or he could check whether it’s working or not, so you are warned prior to your visit.

Along with having a ceiling hoist in the facility, there was also a changing bed to be used by those who weren’t able to use the toilet independently and had trouble with their incontinence. This piece of equipment is folded away on the left wall of the facility unfolded and is ready for use, though I didn’t need to use it personally, I was able to see the changing bed was fully operational and was very clean ready for its next occupant, it could then be cleaned once again after each use which definitely increased the hygiene levels of the facility.

Unfortunately, there was no screens of privacy, which is often an expected piece of equipment within all ‘Changing Places’ facilities. Personally, I think all ‘Changing Places’ facilities should have screens of privacy to ensure those with using the facilities has their modesty protected. The facility also had very few hangers which resulted in me and my carer having to place our belongings elsewhere while we used the facility, which did clutter the space quite a lot for us.