How To Make Your Washroom As Inclusive As Possible
Everyone needs to pee. That is a fact of life! Perhaps you go once a day? In which case, please drink more. Or maybe you’re hopping in every thirty minutes? In which case, slow down on the cups of tea. Regardless, no matter how many trips to the toilet you make in a day, you deserve an enjoyable experience.
Sensibly designed and stocked toilets are critical to an enjoyable experience for everybody. If you haven’t considered how to support your workforce with toilet facilities, it’s time to start. Here’s how to make your washroom as inclusive as possible.
Create Gender-Neutral Stalls
You needn’t exclude members of staff from specific bathrooms due to gender. Consider combining your male and female washroom stalls into one facility! You’ll streamline your cleaning, so you’ll only have one room to rub down. Additionally, all staff members won’t have to face gender policing, which can be exceptionally comforting for transgender employees.
Consider Wheelchair Users
Typical washroom stalls aren’t large enough to accommodate a wheelchair. You’ll need to take extra measures to meet the needs of disabled employees! Two large stalls nearest to the bathroom entrance can suffice, or you can install an individual bathroom with handrails. One sink and hand dryer also need to be lowered for accessible handwashing. If you have a higher amount of employees with physical disabilities, you may need more wheelchair-friendly facilities. Wheelchair users shouldn’t have to wait longer for a bathroom stall to become available.
Place Plenty Of Sanitary Bins
Every individual bathroom stall would benefit from a sanitary bin. Even within the male washroom, some team members present as men yet still menstruate. Grant a pleasant and straightforward experience for all employees, and protect their dignity with easy waste disposal. You’ll also prevent thick waste from being flushed down the toilet, so you’re less likely to face blockages.
Provide Period Products
Sanitary products are essential, whether you settle on a basket of free pads or install a tampon vending machine. Maintaining personal cleanliness and hygiene is a primary concern for your employees! Demonstrate how highly you value team members who menstruate. You may find that your workforce uses fewer sick days throughout the month since they feel confident they can easily change on their period.
Position Furniture Carefully
Inclusive bathrooms need to cater to people of all shapes and sizes. You shouldn’t hang mirrors so highly that short staff members can’t see themselves. Any seating apparatus can’t be so narrow that only slim employees can utilise it. Your bathroom design and arrangement can be fundamental to the washroom remaining inclusive. Equipment isn’t helpful if you can’t apply it for its intended purpose.
Fit Nappy Bins Everywhere
If you maintain both male and female washroom facilities, nappy disposal bins should be available in both. Single fathers must have accessible changing equipment, or they’re at a significant disadvantage. A gender-neutral bathroom with a baby changing table is also acceptable. Depending on your free space, you may find it sensible to combine the changing facilities with the disabled washroom. Try to be mindful of leaving enough room for a wheelchair to turn, or your baby changing facilities could hinder other employees’ experiences.
Keep Washrooms Well Stocked
Plenty of toilet roll and hand soap is a necessity for a pleasurable experience in the toilets. Hygiene should be easy for everybody, whether the stall is male, female, gender-neutral, or a baby changing facility. When you’re responsible for washroom facilities, emptying bins, replacing consumables, ensuring sanitary products are stocked, and disinfecting germs need to remain a high priority.
Contact us at Woosh to discover how we can elevate your washrooms and improve your inclusivity.
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