Accessible public toilets in city centres: the final instalment?

A report on recent research into the provision of sustainable toilets in city centres, based on data gathered from 500 participants, using personas, case studies, toilet audits and street surveys. The article outlines the research methodology and summarises its findings. Toilet audits revealed that...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Access by design : the journal of the Centre for Accessible Environments 2007-09 (112), p.22-27
Main Authors: Hanson, Julienne, Greed, Clara, Bichard, Jo-Anne
Format: Article
Language:English
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:A report on recent research into the provision of sustainable toilets in city centres, based on data gathered from 500 participants, using personas, case studies, toilet audits and street surveys. The article outlines the research methodology and summarises its findings. Toilet audits revealed that not a single toilet out of a sample of 101, offered the 50 essential design features that the researchers derived from design guidance given in BS 8300: 2001 and Approved Document M (AD M) of the Building Regulations Act of 2004. Rather, the most accessible toilet provided only 32 of the desired characteristics. Nottingham and Liverpool-based case studies demonstrated the value of two grass roots campaigns. Street surveys uncovered that the majority of disabled respondents experienced the following problems: inadequate facilities; lack of awareness of the Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation RADAR scheme which supplies keys to disabled people to enable increased access to public toilets; lack of wheelchair turning space; awkward grab rails; and users with hidden disabilities challenged for making use of an accessible toilet. Finally the article explains that the research has culminated in the creation of an accessible toilet design resource, available either via the internet or as a CD-Rom, featuring eight toilet design templates by architect and access advisor, Vin Goodwin.
ISSN:0959-1591