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19
Aug
Changing Places toilet to open in Ripon city centre next month
A refurbished toilet block, which will include facilities for people with disabilities and their carers, will open in Ripon next month.
Creation of the city centre's first Changing Places toilet has involved total refurbishment of the existing block near Ripon Bus Station and library.
Work on the £162,000 project began in May following an announcement by North Yorkshire Council that Killinghall company Dalebuild Ltd had been awarded the contract to create the new facility.
After a successful bid by the now-defunct Harrogate Borough Council and Ripon Disability Forum, £40,000 was granted through the government’s Changing Places Fund towards the cost of the new facility.
The toilets are larger and more accessible for people with disabilities and restricted mobility who cannot use standard accessible toilets. They include equipment such as hoists, curtains, adult-sized changing benches and space for carers.
The men's and women's toilets in the block are already open, but the Changing Places toilet will open next month.
Ripon Disability Forum is working alongside businesses and other organisations in the city on its Access Ambassadors initiative, designed to make Ripon more access aware and accessible.
Trustee Jeremy Dunford told the Stray Ferret:
Changing Places toilets allow families greater freedom when caring for a family member with specific needs.
They allow whole families to shop, visit and travel with more confidence and security. For independent people with greater need it means their independence is supported by the facilities they need.
This is great news for businesses, residents and visitors to the city of Ripon.
Changing Places toilets at other Ripon locations
Ripon already has a Changing Places toilet at the Jack Laugher Leisure and Wellness Centre and Ripon Cathedral has plans to include one as part of its proposed £8 million annexe development on Minster Gardens. These would be in replacement for the current public toilets on the site.
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