A brand new accessible toilet equipped for people with special access needs and their carers has opened at Carsington Water in Derbyshire.

The Changing Places toilets are designed to meet the needs of people with limited mobility or who have access needs. The toilet comes equipped with a fold-down adult-sized changing bed, electric hoist and a shower facility, to provide some extra assistance for people and their families and give them the confidence to enjoy a day out in the countryside. 

John Matkin from Severn Trent, said: “We hope that this new Changing Places facility will give additional confidence to people with accessibility needs, who might not otherwise have thought about having a day out in the countryside .  

“We want our visitor sites to provide a fantastic day out for everyone and Carsington Water is a great example of a space that can be enjoyed by so many people. 

“We hope this Changing Places facility will make a day out at Carsington Water a little easier for some of our existing visitors and encourage those who haven’t been able to visit before to come and enjoy our wonderful site.

“We’re keen to keep working to make our beautiful reservoirs more accessible and we plan to bring Changing Places to more of our visitor sites over the coming years.” 

The new Changing Places facility was opened by guests Gillian Scotford of charity AccessibleUK visitors Gary Speed and Rafi Solaiman, and Jon Collier from specialist equipment provider, Astor Bannerman. 

You can find more information about accessibility at Carsington Water on our website https://www.stwater.co.uk/carsington