Doggy dreams

[ghoti_mhic_uait]

I had a dream that Colin got me a dog for Christmas, a lovely brindled Staff cross. She had a broken leg, and he said that partly he got her because she'd be ready to go for walks at the same time I would be, but not before, and partly because noone else wanted a dog with a broken leg and she deserved some loving. She was an utterly sweet dog, it's true.

Anyway, I wanted to post something much less happy. I've been thinking about places that are accessible by wheelchair, for obvious reasons, and I am really very cross at firstly myself and secondly restaurants. I can't believe I've never noticed before how many restaurants you can wheel into, but then to get to the disabled toilets you have to squeeze between tables that are set too closely for a wheelchair to get down.

Hon. Mentions to Pizza Hut (the one on Newmarket Road, I think the one in town would be less good) and Yo! Sushi, both of whom have actually accessible toilets and seemed to consider a customer in a wheelchair as any other customer.

I'm OK, I can take my crutches and walk from table to toilet, but I'm not actually disabled.

Of course, there are probably problems for other places too, but I'm not getting out a lot. Presumably any shop I can't get round with the pram is not wheelchair accessible, but there aren't a lot of those. I hadn't previously even considered how difficult the tube is, because that's pretty easy with a pushchair. In fact, I love the tube as a woman alone with a baby/toddler, because people are generally really helpful. And trains! There are more now that have wheelchair spaces and no steps up than when I first started carting a baby around, but they're still not reliable.

How are disabled people even meant to get to work let alone do the work when they get there? I mean, we hear a lot about DLA cuts, so someone must have thought about that. Maybe we're going to have a public transport overhaul to make the DLA cuts feasible. Ooh look, a flying pig.


So you can see why I would be cross with myself for having known all this and just not thought about it, reliant on my mobile-privilege and not thinking of anyone else.

Comments

[gerald_duck]

A friend of mine has invested in a pair of lightweight aluminium ramps for his motorised chair. They stow easily, and are sufficient to get him into most village pubs. He somewhat drily notes that one or two of the less reputable publicans think having a doorstep means they don't need to accomodate disabled customers and likes watching the look on their faces when the ramps materialise. (-8

With many places, I suspect the trick is to book in advance (or go at a less busy time) and make clear that you want a table with uncluttered wheelchair access door-to-table-to-accessible-loo. I've seen that work with many places like the Michaelhouse Café, Wagamama, the Cambridge Blue since its refit and Brown's as well as my favourite gastropub out in the fens (The Anchor in Sutton Gault). Thinking back, there are many others where it would stand a good chance of working.

[ghoti.livejournal.com]

The Carlton has a wheelchair friendly entrance, but I'm not sure it'd be possible to then get into the toilets. I suspect you're right about the timing, and there are of course other places we could go than the ones I've mentioned, but they're the best I've experienced so far.

[gerald_duck]

Hmm. Interesting terminology issue. A venue could have an "accessible" toilet (i.e. one which met accessibility criteria) which was not actually accessible, in the sense of being reachable past tables, people, etc.

But the Carlton doesn't actually have an accessible toilet at all, does it? Certainly not in the bar we frequent, but not in the other one either? (Hmm. And the wheelchair-friendly entrance is to the bar we frequent, in any case.)

There are a lot of places that I know have wheelchair-friendly entrances and plenty of space to move around and reach the toilets, but where I'm not certain they have an accessible toilet, never having checked. The Golden Curry and Saffron Brasserie, for example.

[ghoti.livejournal.com]

No, no accessible toilets at all. In retrospect, I'm surprised they didn't put one in with the refit, it would have required a little reorganisation of the ladies and a wider door over by the bar. Maybe it was too expensive, or maybe noone thought of it.

[gerald_duck]

Having seen what my employer got away with in its refit, I suspect the answer is that enforcement of building regulations in relation to accessibility and refurbishment is depressingly lax in Cambridge.

[beckyc.livejournal.com]

I wonder if there was a space issue - it is already rather cramped. Even *without* any mobility aid, I struggle to get into one of the two loos that they have!

[ghoti.livejournal.com]

I think if you changed it from two to one, it should be possible to make it big enough, and then it could have a baby change unit too.

[feanelwa.livejournal.com]

Neither of those in my memory have an accessible toilet. I'm not sure I'd agree that the Golden Curry has plenty of space when the chairs are all full of humans, especially when you have to go round the corners near the door.

[gerald_duck]

There's a lot more space turning right from the entrance than turning left, and there's then a way through to the loos past the bar area.

I've eaten with a wheelchair user in the Golden Curry and, as I recall, the trickiest bit was negotiating the airlock doors to the outside — it takes two assistants, one holding each door open.

[feanelwa.livejournal.com]

A secret corridor I never knew they had! Cooool

[numberland.livejournal.com]

"The Carlton has a wheelchair friendly entrance"

Um, unless the refit changed it substantially no it doesn't, there is a sizeable step down into the pub which you can't see as you come in and I wasn't told about when I came in in my powerchair, getting out was interesting and actually got hurt and bruised quite badly in the process as I had to take a run up to manage it :/

[ghoti.livejournal.com]

Are we talking about the same door? The French windows round the side? I didn't notice a step with either wheelchair or pram.

[numberland.livejournal.com]

Yes. It's not a big step (about 2-3" IIRC, and crucially it's down into the pub so not visible from outside and they called it wheelchair access even when specifically asked about powerchairs.

[ghoti.livejournal.com]

How annoying :( I always assumed things would be easier with a powered chair.