A new toilet and changing facility to help people with complex needs visit the seaside has opened in Brightlingsea.
The Changing Places facility on the Promenade Way car park is for people who cannot use traditional disabled toilets and includes hoists, shower facilities, a height-adjustable changing table and a sink.
Three more new facilities have been installed by Tendring District Council (TDC) in Clacton, Frinton and Holland-on-Sea, bringing the total in the district to nine.
Grant funding of £300,000 from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities paid for the new facilities in Brightlingsea, Clacton and Holland Haven; while Essex County Council’s Short Breaks service, which supports disabled children in the county, funded the site in Frinton.
Peter Kotz, TDC cabinet member for assets, said the facilities were a lifeline for many people. “For people with complex needs a day out to the seaside can be a huge challenge, trying to plan in things many of us take for granted such as using the toilet.”
He added: “Having nine Changing Places facilities around our district opens up the area as a visitor destination for people coming from near and far, meaning everyone can enjoy our beautiful Essex Sunshine Coast.”
Applications for an access key can be made on the TDC website at www.tendringdc.gov.uk/leisure/seafront-and-beaches/changing-places.
Full details of the locations of Changing Places facilities, and how to access them, can be found on the national website at www.changing-places.org/find.
