To feel so overwhelmingly sad at the lack of ramps in UK shops and restaurants

Under the Equality Act, employers, local authorities, schools, and service providers are required to make reasonable adjustments to remove barriers that may prevent disabled individuals from accessing employment, education, or essential services. I hope that helps - https://www.rapidramp.co.uk/product-news/what-does-dda-stand-for

GOSH have 2 Changing Places according to the Changing Places website. I use the map on their website to check before we travel to a new area so I know where I can change my young person

https://www.changing-places.org/find

As a PP said, our world has become so much smaller.

We’ve been in the system for 23 years. It was easier when we could lift him to change him on toilet floors or lift him in his wheelchair up steps, but that quickly stopped as he grew.

We used to visit northern France frequently and the beach there was brilliant, boardwalk to the sea and always got a disabled parking space.

Here, we’d find somewhere to go, for instance the cinema, then their lift would break and it would take months to repair.

Changing him now when we’re out is almost impossible. ‘Changing places’ are brilliant but have to be maintained. Several years ago, we convinced our local hospital to provide a changing place, when we visited in May their hoist and changing bench were both broken. Despite complaining, the hospital have still not repaired the bench.

Shops don’t have to have lifts etc, then just have to help you with your purchase. We once needed to get a helmet for my son (so he could ride in my bike trailer), because it was upstairs we couldn’t get him up there, they said they could bring a helmet downstairs for him to try, you can imagine how long that experience took.

Even if you can get in places it’s not always plane sailing. We went to church for a friend’s christening, we managed to get the wheelchair in and were all seated when a church person told us we’d have to move as he was a ‘fire hazard’. How rude, we left.

Even places that try to promote disability end up failing. London Zoo used to do a ‘Special Needs Day’, where you only got tickets if you could prove disability. Unfortunately, too many places (aquarium for one) were inaccessible, when we queried it we were told the place was too old to adapt.

It is sad that a minority of people are left out, but with only 3-8% of disabled people in wheelchairs it’s not going to change.

I agree about hospitals but GOSH has some facilities with changing benches hoists etc. Not everywhere but they certainly have some

Also as an aside - the more effort and care that the country puts into accessibility, the better for absolutely everyone.

Most of us will become old and frail at some point.

Accessibility everywhere is great for the economy, as so many more people would be able to shop, go out to eat, the cinema, day trips, it's much better for mental health due to reduction in loneliness etc, better for disabled peoples' physical health as they can get out and about to improve their fitness, reducing burden on the NHS, and creates better access to work.

Totally sympathise. One of my pet hates is when somewhere says it has accessible paths, and it's gravel. I bloomin hate gravel.

I always think that if the SS Great Britain, a 200 year old boat in Bristol, can do it (it's amazing) then anywhere can. Especially with little things like portable ramps for shops.

Whereabouts in the country are you? I totally understand about beaches, it's an absolute nightmare. However this summer we went to Studland Beach in Dorset and it was amazing...a massive disabled car park, ramps everywhere, a changing places toilet, and free use of a beach wheelchair (if she can transfer), plus a nice flat sandy beach with close access to the water. Loved it.

Some really great groups to join on Facebook:
Disabled Ramblers UK
Accessible Holidays and Day Trips
Accessible, Adapted or Disabled Holiday Lets, Places to Visit and Days Out UK.

There's a guy who's creating a website/app about accessible beaches, can't remember the link but he often posts on one of those groups.

Look up trampers (if she can transfer from her wheelchair) - they're often available at National Trust Places, can't wait til my son is 14 and can use them.

Do you have a radar key? If not, order one online and then you can use the locked disabled toilets out and about.

Sorry I meant tiniest spaces not best!

I’ll add to my gripe above about hospitals because they are worse in my experience for disabled children who are unable to weight-bear. The two my child has to attend - Great Ormond Street Hospital I’ve had to change my daughter in a window ledge because the toilets are not accessible in any sense. She’s too big now for the window ledge so it’s either I change her in the appointment on the examination table or as is so often the case on the pissy toilet floor (then my back aches for hours) - the only accessible toilet is in the restaurant in a separate building which isn’t great if she does a poo 5 minutes before her appointment.
Our local hospital has lots of modernisation - a terrible car park with the best spaces and a handful of disabled spots and the staff have no idea whether there’s a changing facility where she can lie to be changed. I’ve been directed to a baby change facility - my daughter is 8 and is as tall as most 11 year olds. They sometimes smirk and tell me the disabled toilets are extra wide - sure but what can I do in there other than wheel her around. She can’t stand or sit on a toilet,
I feel so sad for her being in this world where she’s unable to fend for herself and I’m getting older

Even when there is enough disabled parking at the hospital people are quick to abuse it. In theory Alder Hey have loads. In reality when you walk along the row generally less than 50% actually have badges displayed.

and on the disabled parking people I wish places would stop replacing disabled parking with electric charging spots without adding more disabled spaces in!

It is shameful how we treat disabled people in this country. Most of what is needed is a relatively easy fix. I agree with - this is where resources should be going. Stuff the rainbow pavements and workshops and focus on equitability and inclusion.

Our local hospital has actually taken out half the drop-off parking spaces outside the building and replaced them with a rainbow pavement. There are already not enough disabled spaces in the car park, so most people use the drop off spaces with wheelchairs. You would have thought a hospital of all places, would have prioritised disabled patients. (I have a disabled teen dd, who was using a wheelchair).

Yes, I think these designers/planners need to spend the day with various disabled people to understand the challenges.

If lack of a dropped kerb means getting somewhere in a wheelchair is impossible (rather than just a 200m diversion), I would suggest getting in touch with your local council member. They tend to me more helpful when there is an election coming up.

It's often a bit more than having a temporary ramp though, isn;t it ? no use having a ramp if the door frame itself is too small to take a wheel chair....

If access was as simple as “wider doorway” it would be easy but in reality it isn’t that simple sadly and it’s not possible to make everywhere accessible.

I am lucky DS school is modern enough build to have a lift (when it works!) so he can get around. That doesn’t remove all the barriers he faces to education but it certainly helps.

I work in a primary school built in the 1800s. MOST of the building is accessible and we have done what we can but the nature of the building means the only way possible to make it fully accessible would be to totally demolish it and start again which really isn’t an option!

But it's not just doorways that need changing for places to be properly accessible.

Narrow or winding corridors, uneven floors, internal steps, absence of lifts to other storeys, crowded tables or shop displays, incorrect toilets, parking too far away with insufficient room... All of these are barriers to accessibility. And that's only considering those who have access needs around their mobility. Not even thinking about what you'd need to make things properly accessible for those who are visually or hearing impaired for example. Or those who have toileting problems or those with special needs.

Realistically, making everywhere truly accessible for everyone would require a wholesale rebuild of most of our towns and cities.

yorkshire and Northumberland most beaches have ramps and are disabled accessible- I am disabled myself so notice these things - utter rubbish at only having 5 in the uk! 🤣

Also talking of coffee shops. Me and my friends had a preferred coffee shop in the city, that we used to get take out from. We asked them to get a ramp and they said they didn’t have to because they could only seat a certain number and so were exempt. I was quite taken aback because to me it seemed like “we don’t have to make reasonable adjustments so we won’t” clearly they didn’t want my custom

I hear you too, I have a child who is in a wheelchair and so many shops/cafes etc are difficult to access and are a nightmare to navigate once inside.

YANBU. I consider myself very fortunate that both my nearest city and the suburban town I live in are very accessible. I have found out the hard way that this is not the case everywhere. I lived somewhere else for a couple of years and had to use long work around routes to get where needed.

I’m reluctant to travel much in the UK because you never know. I visited a “bucket list” destination (for me) and could hardly get in anywhere

I wouldn’t say that European cities outclass us though. Rome was very difficult. Followed the wheelchair symbol in a station to be met by two flights of stairs ! I’ve not been to Paris city proper but I’ve heard rumblings that France in general is not that progressive when it comes to disability

One of the biggest issues we find is “pavement furniture” making it like a slalom course trying to get down a pavement or forcing to use the road instead (if you can get up and down the kerb!)

I agree.

The protection of historic buildings and the need for access often conflict. I live in a place where the entire town centre is a conservation area and loads of the buildings are listed, mostly grade II*. There are many pubs, cafes and shops that are inaccessible for wheelchair users, and at least two of the pubs that are wheelchair accessible don't have wheelchair accessible toilets.

I don't think a removable ramp would be much help in many of them, either. Because it's an old town, the pavements are narrow and the steps to shop entrances are often steep. A ramp suitable for wheelchairs would probably have to extend halfway across the busy high street to be accessible.

My parents lived in Milton Keynes, where the city centre is nearly all less than 50 years old. Everything is level, and access for people with disabilities has been designed in from the start. But I wouldn't want to see our architectural heritage replaced by similar development.

@WelliesandWashing Thanks good to know, although this isn’t relevant to me anymore. It was quite a while ago. I certainly don’t remember any ramps at that time, but hopefully it is accessible to people now!

They do have a ramp entrance on Gibson street so that you can access the Disability Service if you have to go there again.

https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/disability/contact/