This week (Tuesday 22 October) the Deputy Mayor of Cambridge, Cllr Dinah Pounds, officially opened Cambridge City Council’s latest newly-refurbished toilet block at Cherry Hinton Hall park.

The block includes the city’s newest fully accessible Changing Places facility with a height-adjustable changing bench and hoist - and loads of room inside for wheelchair users, people with limited mobility and their carers.

The Cherry Hinton Hall toilet block, which is open every day from 8am-7pm, also has a self-contained baby-changing facility among four other renovated, self-contained unisex toilets including another accessible unit for disabled visitors.

These refurbished toilet facilities at Cherry Hinton Hall follow on from the council’s other recently refurbished public toilets at Drummer Street in Cambridge City Centre, which opened earlier in the autumn.

The Drummer Street facilities also contain a new Changing Places facility alongside   self-contained baby-changing facility and six renovated self-contained unisex toilets including additional accessible ones.

The two new Changing Places facilities were installed thanks to funding from the government in association with Muscular Dystrophy UK.

Changing Places is a nationwide initiative to ensure more suitable toilet facilities are installed in public places, so that everyone, regardless of their access needs or disability or reliance on the assistance of carers or specialist equipment, can use a toilet facility with dignity and hygienically.

People with profound and multiple learning disabilities or with physical disabilities often need extra equipment and space to allow them to use toilets safely and comfortably. Changing Places toilets meet these needs and enable anyone, regardless of their disability, to continue with their day-to-day activities.

In addition to the new toilets at Cherry Hinton Hall and Drummer Street, council-run Changing Places facilities are also available in Cambridge at Grand Arcade and at the Clay Farm Centre in Trumpington.

For a full list of Changing Places facilities visit www.changing-places.org and for details of all public toilets in Cambridge visit www.cambridge.gov.uk/public-toilets