Woman calls for more accessible disabled toilets in Eastbourne shopping centre

Veronica Graham visited Langney Shopping Centre at the end of June to eat at Fry’s American BBQ.

While in the shopping centre Ms Graham, who is disabled, needed to go to the toilet.

Ms Graham said she was informed that the centre’s disabled toilets were outside the building.

Ms Graham raised concerns over how other elderly and disabled residents might fare with the circumstances.

She said, “If they are in there having a meal and they need to go to the loo, they have to leave their meal and go all the way around outside to go to the toilet. It is not practical.

“When they were organising it they should have put in a disabled toilet.

“There are a lot of people in wheelchairs, what are they supposed to do?

“You have to go all the way around and go outside.”

Ms Graham called for the shopping centre’s disabled toilets to be more accessible.

Langney Shopping Centre manager Neil Avis said, “We do have disabled toilets on site available to all disabled users. The location of the disabled unit is external and just a short distance.”

According to the centre manager, they are also looking into getting a Changing Places-style facility internally.

On the Government website it explains that Changing Places are ‘larger accessible toilets for severely disabled people, with equipment such as hoists, curtains, adult-sized changing benches and space for carers’.

Mr Avis said, “We believe we have funding for this, so as soon as we receive the go ahead we will be cracking on with the works.”

According to Mr Avis, the disabled toilets have been external to the building since 1973 and were recently refurbished.

Mr Avis added, “We do have facilities available at the centre and with the new restaurants and gym opening they have agreed for customers to use their facilities as well.”