A FAMILY-owned hotel will be the first in the UK to install a toilet recommended for people with severe disabilities – after winning a £70,000 council grant.

Bournemouth’s Marsham Court will have a Changing Places toilet, which will include a hoist, an adult-sized changing bench and generous space for the user and up to two carers.

The national code of practice for architects, builders and planners recommends a Changing Places toilet for all larger buildings and complexes – but as of last year, there were only 1,500 in the UK.

Managing director Rosie Radwell’s family have owned the Marsham Court for more than 30 years.

She said: “My mother battled cancer before her death and her ever-increasing needs, as well as those of my goddaughter who has cerebral palsy, have shown us as a family just how much people with disabilities struggle without the proper facilities. Many disabled people simply do not go on holiday.”

The Marsham Court secured a £70,000 grant from BCP Council’s Bounce Back Fund, which it will match to create accessible facilities.

The Changing Places Consortium says an estimated 250,000 children and adults would benefit from Changing Place toilets.

According to the disability organisation Purple, UK businesses lose £2billion worth of revenue per month by ignoring the needs of disabled people. The estimated loss to hospitality businesses per month is £163million.

Karen Hoe, changing places manager for Muscular Dystrophy UK, which co-chairs the Changing Places Consortium, said: “We’re delighted that the Marsham Court has announced plans to install a Changing Places toilet, particularly because it’s the first hotel in the UK to be doing so.

“Changing Places toilets make a world of difference to the 250,000 people across the UK with severe disabilities, who rely on them to go to the toilet safely and with dignity.

“Being able to use the toilet as and when you need is a right, not a privilege, and we encourage more hotels to install a Changing Places toilet to help take away the exclusion that so many disabled people face on a daily basis”

BCP Council deputy leader Cllr Philip Broadhead said: “We are very pleased to award this grant to the Marsham Court. Their plans, which focus on providing top notch facilities for profoundly disabled people, including the provision of Changing Places toilets, are a great way to help enhance the lives of the most vulnerable and severely disabled members of our community, and make the lives of their carers much easier and less stressful.”