Beekse Bergen opens the first Changing Places toilet in the Netherlands; who follows?

The ‘Changing Places’ concept has yet to land in the Netherlands. In Great Britain it is now normal for people with severe physical disabilities to also have options to go to the toilet. By creating a Changing Place, a Day Out becomes an option for many more families. The Friends Lottery is making a donation of €2 million available, with which 30 new Changing Places can be (partly) financed.

What is a Changing Place?

A ‘normal’ toilet does not offer sufficient options for people with severe disabilities to use it. For that reason, some families are currently unable to go to an amusement park or zoo. A Changing Place is (much) more than a disabled toilet. It is a special care area for children and adults who need to be changed while lying down. Changing Places are a solution for those who need more tools or more space. There is even room to bring 1 or 2 supervisors or caregivers.

There is a bit more to companies that facilitate a Changing Place facility. That is why the location receives help and support in setting up the location and staff is trained in operating the hoist, among other things.

More information:

A day out for every family

During the festive opening – under the guidance of actress Jetty Mathurin and presenter Tako Rietveld – various experts explained how important Changing Places toilets are for these families.

Day out

“As a child it was already a problem that I couldn’t go to a toilet anywhere, but it still is now,” says Marieke van Gastel. “As a child or adult with a disability, you just want to be able to go away for a day, without having to think about whether you can go to the toilet somewhere. It is therefore fantastic that this facility is now open. “

Bernice Schaddelee, Jens’ mother, underlines this: “We now often change him on a table or coat. That’s not nice, but when he gets bigger, that’s really no longer possible. So it’s really nice that this is possible; it is so important to be able to get away as a family and make memories together.”

Ambition

A Changing Places Toilet is a special horizontal toilet facility including a hoist and an adult stretcher. There are already more than 2,200 Changing Places in Great Britain, the first in the Netherlands has now been opened in Beekse Bergen.

For Beekse Bergen, the Changing Places Toilet is the next step in the ambition to offer as many people as possible a wonderful day out. Rens Willemsen, general manager of the Safari Park: “In Beekse Bergen we think it is important that everyone can enjoy the beautiful surroundings, the animals and the other facilities we offer here. When we heard that a Changing Places Toilet would also allow people to visit for whom a day at the zoo was previously out of reach, we immediately started working on this.”

Making memories

Vulnerable families also want a day out together, says Henk-Willem Laan (director of the Disabled Child Foundation and experienced father of Joas, 17 years old): “Everyone wants to make beautiful memories with the family, relatives or friends. But not everyone can just leave the house and go out. A large group of children and adults with severe disabilities require more facilities than are available in a regular wheelchair-accessible toilet. That is the harsh reality that these families face every day.”

A Changing Places Toilet at the Beekse Bergen; it doesn’t stop there. Thanks to a donation of almost two million euros from the Friends Lottery, a Changing Places Toilet will be built at 30 top cultural locations in the Netherlands over the next three years, so that all families can enjoy a wonderful day out together. The ultimate goal is to realize a Changing Places Toilet in every place of residence in the Netherlands.

About those involved

The first Changing Places Toilet in the Netherlands was created thanks to the tireless efforts of various stakeholders who are passionate about this project.

The pursuit of Beekse Bergen is to offer people one or more days among the animals, in nature or on the water. All locations – the four residential parks, the Safari Park, Speelland and the Event Center – are designed in such a way that people with disabilities can also make optimal use of them. For example, the walking paths in the Safari Park are paved, the aisles in the public areas are so wide that they are also accessible for wheelchairs, the swimming pools are accessible to people in wheelchairs and the holiday parks have accommodations that are equipped for people with a physical disability.

The Disabled Child Foundation: A disability does not limit a child for life. Being left out does. An accessible society in which children with disabilities are no longer excluded – that is the ideal of the Disabled Child Foundation. With the support of donors and volunteers, the Disabled Child Foundation helps to make playgrounds, sports clubs and schools accessible. So that children with and without disabilities meet each other, play together and make friends. With the aim: no child without friends.

Joint Projects: Experiencing free time is more than just a fun pastime. Free time is not a luxury but a necessity, perhaps even more so for people with disabilities. Fun for everyone – that is what Joint Projects is committed to. Together with trained experts (so-called Rebel teams), Joint Projects supports governments and recreation companies to become more accessible. So that all visitors can enjoy a relaxing day out with their family or friends and escape from everyday reality for a while.

TR Care: Some people need support in their daily lives with specialist aids. TR Care is a company that wants to make the world a little more beautiful with more than 30 years of experience in furnishing sanitary facilities and supplying lifting systems for healthcare. That is why they have committed themselves wholeheartedly to the realization, from design to installation, of the first Changing Places Toilet in Beekse Bergen.

Ambition to expand: 30 top locations with Changing Places Toilet

Changing Places Netherlands is a project that has been embraced by the Disabled Child Foundation based on the mission that no disabled child is left out. Thanks to a donation of almost two million euros from the Friends Lottery, a Changing Places Toilet will be built at 30 top cultural locations in the Netherlands over the next three years, so that all families can enjoy a wonderful day out together. The ultimate goal is to realize a Changing Places Toilet in every place of residence in the Netherlands.

During the opening of this first location, several representatives from other attractions and museums were also present to view the facility for themselves.

A background article will soon follow on this website in which we will discuss the business economic consequences in more detail. (including: What is involved in realizing a Changing Place at your company.)

More information: