Baby change facilities in male ralway station toilets

[crehld]

This story got me thinking about baby change provision (or rather lack of) in UK station toilets today: http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/artic...ets-in-the-us-to-be-equipped-with-baby-change

My experience travelling on the railways with baby (rapidly becoming toddler) crehld is its very hit and miss.

Baby change facilities are almost universally available in female toilets (I only have Mrs crehld's word to go on, but I trust her implicitly).

Often baby change facilities will be placed in unisex disabled toilets, which is all very well and good, but rather inconvenient considering making use of such facilities requires trekking to the ticket office / customer service desk (often on another platform and while carrying baby and associated guff) to ask for them to unlock it (shout out to the wonderful staff at Lancaster station who are always happy to do this for me).

Very rarely do I find adequate facilities in male toilets in railway stations (though I fully recognize this problem exists beyond the railway industry too).

The provision of facilities is negligible in cost terms - you just have to fit a bracket to a wall which supports a cheap plastic fold down change mat. So any argument citing cost is utter nonsense.

So, what are your experiences? Why, for the most part, can't railway companies be bothered to provide facilities for fathers wanting to change their child's nappies? Why must the assumption always be that the mother changes the baby? Why, where unisex baby change facilities exist, must they be hidden behind lock and key where they are no use to anyone? As railway companies and other organizations seem incapable to provide adequate facilities of their own accord, should our government enact a similar law to that signed by President Obama?

Discuss.

 

[Blindtraveler]

Im not, and never want to be a parent but I am a modern man and am with you that baby change areas need to be available to both sexes

 

[duncanp]

The other issue I find with this is that a father may sometimes take his daughter into a male toilet is she is so young that it would not be appropriate to leave her alone outside.

Presumably mothers will also take their young sons into female toilets for similar reasons.

I think the reasons for lack of baby change facilities in male toilets is historic, based on the somewhat outdated assumption that it is always that mother that changes the nappy.

Don't know whether a law would be helpful , but they certainly should be encouraged to provide such facilities.

What should be banned completely though is a parent of either gender changing a s***ty nappy right in the middle of a crowded train carriage.

I have seen this happen, and the parent seems completely oblivious to the stench permeating the carriage.

Has anyone else experienced this?

 

[AlterEgo]

What should be banned completely though is a parent of either gender changing a s***ty nappy right in the middle of a crowded train carriage.

I have seen this happen, and the parent seems completely oblivious to the stench permeating the carriage.

Has anyone else experienced this?

Yes, once - on a train which didn't have baby changing facilities.

 

[axlecounter]

I use the women's toilet to change my daughter when there's no alternative or the alternative is the often alcatraz-locked disabled toilet. Just get in carefully, or ask someone going in to check for embarassing situations, explain why I'm going in, never had problems.

Sure it should be provided anywhere these days, but I guess quite some years will go by before we'll be able to change a kid in public places.

 

[Blindtraveler]

Good on you for doing that, respect.

As a disabled person I am entitled to a Radar key for disabled toilets and if someone needs to use the baby change unit within I will gladly unlock before going on my way.

 

[Stigy]

On SWT's network at least, baby change facilities are in the disabled toilets....having said that, I've never ventured in to the ladies to check

I believe one can obtain a 'radar' key (the key required to unlock disabled toilets) if they are disabled, so don't see why parents of young children can't, either? They're easy enough to come by and are universal (although mine doesn't seem to work on newer locks?). This is all well and good of course, if the station is staffed. If unstaffed, all toilets will be locked with a separate key to prevent vandalism.

 

[Blindtraveler]

I suppose the way to do it for parents would be to lease a key to them for say 4 years from birth and then reclaim it to avoid abuse?

Stigy, how old is your key? The lock design has changed slightly and if yours is more than 15 years old it may no longer work.

 

[Antman]

I suppose the way to do it for parents would be to lease a key to them for say 4 years from birth and then reclaim it to avoid abuse?

Stigy, how old is your key? The lock design has changed slightly and if yours is more than 15 years old it may no longer work.

But what about grandparents? I've had the same problems with my youngest granddaughter although she's out of nappies now. There does seem to be a general assumption that only women change nappies!

 

[alexl92]

I fully agree that facilities should be available in both sexes toilets. Only thing is, in many of the Gents' toilets I've been in, they're so tight for space that I can't see where a changing mat could be accommodated. At Huddersfield, for example, neither set of loos would have room for a fold-down mat.

Perhaps a small room could be created specially for changing that isn't in either loo?

 

[3141]

Yes, I'm a grandparent, and both the grandchildren are girls, and so was my daughter (surprise!), so the issue has come up over a considerable time.

I don't recall ever being in the situation of needing to change a nappy when I was in sole charge of a baby; or more likely, if a change was needed it had to wait till we got home. But there is a problem when a girl aged 3 or 4 needs the loo. I just take them into the male toilets. At the age of 4 the younger granddaughter directed me to the disabled loo, which is apparently what her dad had used on a previous occasion.

Do we really need a law about this? Imagine the headlines about "the nappy state"....!

 

[Tetchytyke]

When they're toddlers and they need the loo it isn't a problem, you just take them into the gents and take them into a cubicle. I take my six year old daughter in all the time.

Baby changing is a pain though. They do seem to be in the disabled loo and in the ladies, but never in the gents. It's really hard trying to find the right person to get in the disabled loo- Leeds is particularly bad for this- and there aren't many other choices. The idea of laying a baby down on the floor in the toilets to change her is just about tolerable in a clean restaurant, but in a station toilet? I dread to think what they'd catch.

 

[duncanp]

You can buy a RADAR key on line for about £5, so that would give you access to any disabled loo, not just those in railway stations.

They don't check on your eligibility when ordering one.

 

[Darandio]

What should be banned completely though is a parent of either gender changing a s***ty nappy right in the middle of a crowded train carriage.

I have seen this happen, and the parent seems completely oblivious to the stench permeating the carriage.

Has anyone else experienced this?

As already noted above, someone has experienced it on a train with no changing facilities.

So what exactly do you suggest the parent could do in such circumstances?

 

[Bletchleyite]

The vestibule would be more considerate than the saloon, and in most cases better ventilated.


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[Darandio]

The vestibule would be more considerate than the saloon, and in most cases better ventilated.

What about on something like a Class 142?

I'm not being deliberately obtuse here, but I am a parent.

 

[Tetchytyke]

The vestibule would be more considerate than the saloon

The vestibule would require putting the baby on the floor.

It's thankfully never happened to me on a train without a toilet with changing facilities. But if the baby has a stinky nappy you'll get to smell it for longer if you don't change the baby.

 

[Bletchleyite]

It would be very unhygienic to do it on a table or seat unless you also carry proper cleaning equipment to sterilise the surface afterwards. Carrying a changing mat would make sense if you think this will arise, then the floor is not an issue.


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--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

What about on something like a Class 142

It's still away from the majority of seating.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Islineclear3_1]

My daughter is grown up now but I did everything I could to avoid changing her in a station toilet as they were generally so dire. And as slam door stock was the norm back then, certainly no on-train baby change facilities then - let alone modular accessible toilets

 

[DeeGee]

I recently had to change my daughter on a lightweight changing mat (I have one on the buggy at all times), on the floor of a gents' toilet.

That was not too nice. I'm not doing it again.

I'm all for unisex changing facilities. Sometimes they're not thought through, either. Really, they need an adult toilet in them as well. Because sometimes it isn't my daughter who needs to go to the toilet, but me, and there's not room for a buggy, even our little one, plus a baby, plus me.

 

[jon0844]

You can buy a RADAR key on line for about £5, so that would give you access to any disabled loo, not just those in railway stations.

They don't check on your eligibility when ordering one.

I bought one this purpose and never bad any nasty looks (that I know of). For one, an accessible toilet is of course accessible to all. Almost makes you wonder why they lock them.

I get that out of hours it is common to have toilets locked, and this gives people access, but in the daytime there shouldn't be a need to keep them locked and make people have to go find someone to ask for a key.

I've noticed some places now have intercoms instead.

 

[Antman]

Yes, I'm a grandparent, and both the grandchildren are girls, and so was my daughter (surprise!), so the issue has come up over a considerable time.

I don't recall ever being in the situation of needing to change a nappy when I was in sole charge of a baby; or more likely, if a change was needed it had to wait till we got home. But there is a problem when a girl aged 3 or 4 needs the loo. I just take them into the male toilets. At the age of 4 the younger granddaughter directed me to the disabled loo, which is apparently what her dad had used on a previous occasion.

Do we really need a law about this? Imagine the headlines about "the nappy state"....!

Yes I've got three daughters and five granddaughters so I can empathise and yes disabled toilets are the only option most of the time, unisex toilets seem to be very few and far between in this country.

 

[ajb690]

I bought one this purpose and never bad any nasty looks (that I know of). For one, an accessible toilet is of course accessible to all. Almost makes you wonder why they lock them.

I get that out of hours it is common to have toilets locked, and this gives people access, but in the daytime there shouldn't be a need to keep them locked and make people have to go find someone to ask for a key.

I've noticed some places now have intercoms instead.

Speaking as someone with a disabled partner, it believe it is usually locked for two reasons - firstly, because disabled people may have bladder issues and so cannot afford to wait around while someone who is perfectly able to use a normal loo uses the disabled toilet. Secondly, and unfortunately, a disabled loo is often considered the perfect place to hide for a while if you want to do something illegal, and again that stops someone who is unable to use the normal facilities from accessing them.

Station staff do sometimes have problems when I unlock the toilet myself - I had one particularly persistent staff member at East Croydon trying to confiscate my wife's key as he thought I had stolen railway property. Quite difficult to get him to realise that the keys are generic and I hadn't nicked a railway-specific one.

d

 

[PeterC]

Some local authorities, when not closing public toilets completely are going over to unisex cubicles (+1 to South Oxfordshire District Council, theirs have room to take a child in with you).

 

[Bletchleyite]

I think in these more enlightened times it would be better that we (in society as a whole) abolish specific ladies' and gentlemens' toilets, and instead have individual, separate rooms with a toilet and sink, a room of urinals, baby change rooms and disabled toilets.

 

[bnm]

Just passed through Wolverhampton station. Sign pointing to toilets on Platform 1:

"Gentleman and Baby Changing"

So they do exist on the rail network. In one place at least.

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

I think in these more enlightened times it would be better that we (in society as a whole) abolish specific ladies' and gentlemens' toilets, and instead have individual, separate rooms with a toilet and sink, a room of urinals, baby change rooms and disabled toilets.

'Enlightened times'?
What the hell are you talking about, it doesn't matter if it's 1850, 2020 or 2100, women and men need different toilets, pretending they don't is just silly.
How do you think this plan would better society?

Would a woman feel comfortable if a gang of big drunk men walked in shouting? If the door locks are broken it will cause very embarrassing problems either way. And how will urinals work, I'd be uncomfortable if a typical girl were to walk into the toilets.

Your purposal benefits only baby changing dads, & the disabled.
Keep the loos seperate, but have a baby change & DIsabled cubicle added is best.

 

[Tetchytyke]

'Enlightened times'?
What the hell are you talking about, it doesn't matter if it's 1850, 2020 or 2100, women and men need different toilets, pretending they don't is just silly.

Why? I'm pretty sure the fundamentals are the same for both men and women.

And how will urinals work, I'd be uncomfortable if a typical girl were to walk into the toilets.

Pfft, it's like that at most festivals.

 

[LexyBoy]

The provision of facilities is negligible in cost terms - you just have to fit a bracket to a wall which supports a cheap plastic fold down change mat. So any argument citing cost is utter nonsense.

Installation is not overly expensive I would imagine, but you do need adequate space - which would be rare in already-build gents loos, and a wall capable of supporting a substantial weight (at least 50 kg I guess, as the rated limit for most units seems to be 25 kg).

I can't say I've been particularly inconvenienced - when they're tiny you carry *absolutely everything* everywhere, and as soon as they can stand there's no way in hell they're going on a changing station. I'd still use the disabled loo if open as there's more space (and handy red dangly strings for baby to play with), but no biggie.

Toddlers is a different matter - tests your nerves when a 455 turns up on a 90 minute journey with a 2-year-old in tow!

 

[axlecounter]

'Enlightened times'?
What the hell are you talking about, it doesn't matter if it's 1850, 2020 or 2100, women and men need different toilets, pretending they don't is just silly.
How do you think this plan would better society?

Would a woman feel comfortable if a gang of big drunk men walked in shouting? If the door locks are broken it will cause very embarrassing problems either way. And how will urinals work, I'd be uncomfortable if a typical girl were to walk into the toilets.

I think in these more enlightened times it would be better that we (in society as a whole) abolish specific ladies' and gentlemens' toilets, and instead have individual, separate rooms with a toilet and sink, a room of urinals, baby change rooms and disabled toilets.

Individual toilets, no common spaces, end.