Bristol Temple Meads join Stoma Friendly toilets campaign.

28 October, 2024

Network Rail and Colostomy UK are delighted to announce that Bristol Temple Meads is the latest Network Rail managed station to offer Stoma Friendly toilets following in the footsteps of Leeds, Reading, Liverpool Street, and London Paddington amongst others.

Bristol Temple Meads was designed by the British engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel and opened in August 1840 as the western terminus of the Great Western Railway from London Paddington. It’s the busiest station in South West England, with nearly ten million passengers passing through its entrance each year.

Over 200,000 people in the UK are living with stomas, and accessible toilets often don’t include features that allow people to change their stoma bag in a safe and clean environment or that make the process easy. The accessible toilets at Bristol; Temple Meads are Stoma Friendly because they include the following:

Hooks to hang personal belongings,

Shelves to provide a clean surface where people can put their medical supplies,

A bin inside the cubicle to dispose of used stoma bags discretely, and

A full-length mirror which enables people to view their stoma while changing their bag.

Signage on the door reminds people that not all disabilities are visible, which has been shown to reduce any hostility towards those who are using accessible facilities with a hidden disability.

Gabby Cowell, Network Rail Station Delivery Manager for Bristol Temple Meads commented on the upgrades

We are delighted that Bristol Temple Meads now provides a Stoma Friendly facility, enabling us to be more inclusive in our offerings and support all our passenger’s needs. We hope that making our facilities more accessible we will increase passengers’ confidence to travel regardless of their disabilities.”

Giovanni Cinque, Marketing & Campaigns Manager at Colostomy UK said.

Results from our 2022 Stoma Aware survey revealed that 62% of respondents believe a lack of suitable toilet facilities is impacting on their day-to-day life, discouraging them from many of the activities much of society takes for granted, which can lead to isolation and exclusion.

So we’re delighted that Bristol Temple Meads has joined the growing number of Stations adopting Stoma Friendly toilets. Knowing that there are suitable facilities if needed really does make a difference to people living with a stoma and other hidden conditions.

For more on Colostomy UK’s campaigns please visit https://www.colostomyuk.org/campaigns/