Question
I am currently working on a bathroom project for some elderly and was wondering if their was a standard accommodation or rather how do i asses the needs of the facility.

Thanks for being such a great resource.
Joe

Answer
Hi Joe,

Disabled Bathrooms must include grab rails, raised toilet seats and shower chairs just to name a few. Changes to the Building Regulations have been extensive and now cover access for everyone, including- ?Wheelchair users, ?Ambulant disabled people ?People of either sex with babies and small children ?People with luggage ?People with learning difficulties ?People with visual or hearing impairments ?People who lack tactile sensitivity and are likely to scald themselves on hot surfaces. The new standard is required for all new buildings and major refurbishments, including extensions to buildings, or when an entire washroom or bathroom is refitted with new disability products. It also takes into consideration the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, which states that 揳ll suppliers of goods and services must remove all physical barriers where it is deemed reasonable to do so? and this is probably why the new standard is so exorbitant. Here are a few examples of how this construes into actual installations:

Disabled bathrooms in hotels, the bedrooms that have wheelchair access must show a half and half split between bathrooms with showers and bathrooms with baths and for both rooms there are new layout requirements, including a special bath that must be 480mm high with access for a mobile hoist.

Unisex disability toilet facilities In Sports Clubs, for example, a unisex toilet facility providing wheelchair access must be sited at every location within a building where there are washroom facilities; and where there is more than one unisex toilet facility within a building, they must be handed LH/RH to provide choices of transfer side.

It is no longer acceptable to just have disabled toilet facilities with a male or female bathroom. You must also have a separate unisex WC facility. Why unisex? The reasoning behind it is that if a couple, man and wife, use a sports club together and one of them is wheelchair-bound, in a unisex facility the other can go into the room with them to help if needed. The latest developments in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the new Part M of the Building Regulations have made the provision of disabled bathroom products even more important.

Disabled public conveniences, for standard type cubicles, there must be a minimum of 450mm diameter maneuvering space within the cubicle. All doors must either open outwards, or be adapted to be conveniently lifted off from the front in case someone has collapsed against the door. Also all indicator bolts and doors must be easily operated with a closed fist.

All Disabled bathrooms, basin and bath taps (not showers) must be capable of being operated using a closed fist, this means single lever, lever action, push button, or electronic taps must be used.

Non-residential disabled bathrooms, all basin taps, bath taps, showers, and kitchen taps must be thermostatically protected with the hot water discharging at a maximum temperature of 41oC.

Disabled Bathrooms for people with visual disabilities, all types of commercial bathroom and washroom sanitary-ware, walls, and floors must all contrast with each other. This means all white in a bathroom will no longer be acceptable. The standard requires a contrast value of 30% difference in the luminance of the surfaces.

Male / female disabled bathrooms, there must be at least one ambulant cubicle. This cubicle needs to be 800mm wide with a clearance of 750mm from the front edge of the WC to the front of the cubicle. There must also be two horizontal grab rails and at least one vertical rail. The WC must have a seat height of 480mm from the floor although the projection of the WC is not mentioned. The cubicle door must open outwards.

For people with small children, carrying baggage (especially useful in major stores, airports, and stations) and dogs, or ambulant disabled people, in any building where there are four or more cubicles, within a male or female washroom, there must also be an enlarged cubicle. The enlarged cubicle must be 1.20m wide, have one horizontal and one vertical rail set around the WC, and a shelf and folding baby changing table (unless there is a separate baby changing facility close to the washroom). The regulation says that wheelchair accessible toilets must not be used for baby changing areas.

Disabled Bathrooms In offices or changing rooms, for example, where showers are provided for staff or guests, at least one should be a suitable for wheelchair users. Leisure centres with wheelchair access and disabled facilities should ensure that they provide adequate locker room for crutches and other aids to be stored. Also they must provide sufficient space in disabled showers for wheelchair access.

Essentially Disabled Bathrooms must have?br>
   * Changes to the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the new Part M of the Building Regulation have meant that providing people with special needs bathrooms is now more complex.
   * The new legislation covers all new buildings and major refurbishments, including extensions to buildings, or where an entire washroom or bathroom is refitted with new disability products.
   * The requirements include wheelchair access, taps that can be operated with a closed fist, and taps that have a maximum temperature of 41oC.
   * Lastly, for people who are visually impaired, all commercial bathrooms and washrooms sanitary-ware, walls, and floors must be distinctly diverse from each other.


Hope this helped,
Margot

from: http://www.heatandplumb.com/articles/New_Regulations_for_Disabled_bathrooms.html