Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 18th April 2024 Issue no. 1110
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Changing Places to set standard for school hygiene room provision
Architectural designers and contractors are being given a new solution to a growing problem over specification and installation of accessible hygiene facilities in schools.
New Department for Education guidance (Building Bulletin 93) sets out a minimum space requirement for the specialist hygiene rooms, but there are no specific guidelines or criteria for the equipment therein.
Clos-o-Mat, one of Britain's leading suppliers of hygiene rooms and its equivalent Changing Places assisted accessible toilets, is delivering a solution - a 'pick 'n' mix' service that encompasses design advice, supply, installation, commissioning, project management, and ongoing service & maintenance.
"As more mainstream schools accommodate pupils with special educational needs, there is growing demand from the schools for inclusion of a hygiene room - but confusion over what exactly is needed," observes Kelvin Grimes, Clos-o-Mat's dedicated hygiene rooms & Changing Places project manager.
"Hygiene rooms are, in essence, Changing Places assisted, wheelchair-accessible toilets that are not open to the public. We have completed so many successful projects in both sectors that we know the key requirements and most practical options for each client's budget, space etc. Thus we can give a coherent service that will deliver the optimum best value for immediate needs, and future-proof the room for other pupils thereafter."
Clos-o-Mat's ability to deliver is demonstrated in that, in Kent alone, it has, in the past two months, supplied and installed four hygiene rooms at different schools for the same contractor. "We have a 50+ years' pedigree in provision of disabled toileting solutions," adds Kelvin, "That is brought to bear, in that in addition to accessing the standard hygiene room equipment, we can apply our knowledge of the specific needs of children, who may require a raft of considerations from toilet and washbasin height to toilet support systems."
To assist all involved in the process, Clos-o-Mat has published guidelines addressing accessible school toilet provision and specifically hygiene rooms in educational environments. The papers are complimented by a raft of tools including video, typical layouts, 2D and 3D CAD drawings, as well as case studies, all of which can be accessed via the company's website:
15th January 2015