We are Fran, Rachel and Zack, three disabled sports fans among the 250,000+ people in the UK who need Changing Places facilities to go to the toilet safely and with dignity while away from home. As wheelchair users with cerebral palsy, we loved seeing changes in the law that require any new sports facilities with a capacity of over 350 to have at least one Changing Place. This is a massively positive step that will improve our quality of life. As great as this new legislation is, there’s still no legal requirement for existing venues to provide Changing Places. This means that disabled people like us often miss out on access to sport.

What are Changing Places?

Changing Places are accessible toilets for people with complex needs, such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy and motor neurone disease. They’re required to meet a defined standard and must include an accessible toilet, a height-adjustable sink, a bed and a hoist. Currently, less than 10 per cent of sports stadiums have Changing Places facilities. This means that we’re left with three options:

• Only go out for two hours at a time
• Stay at home, or,
• Face being changed on a public toilet floor

For us and for other disabled people, it’s a matter of dignity. For many of us, standard disabled toilets don’t offer the facilities we need and many people have to suffer the indignity of being changed on the toilet floor.

This is a real social injustice. Help us make a difference for disabled athletes and fans.

How Can I Help?

Sign and share this petition, and help us to share this information with your local MPs and Sports Clubs through the #RiseForSport hashtag.

We’d like to be able to put on our team shirt and watch our favourite sport safe in the knowledge that we can go to the toilet when we need to. We don’t think it’s much to ask.

#RiseForSport