#LooAdvent

Campaigner Sarah Brisdion has been causing a stir on social media with her #LooAdvent selfies. Over the last 18 days she has been taking and sharing Christmas photos with a difference- they are taken on the loo! Why? To raise awareness of the importance of Changing Places toilets.

Donning antlers, Santa hats and other festive fancy dress Sarah has been sharing photos and campaigning messages every day of advent to remind people about the indignity that hundreds of thousands of disabled people face every day due to a lack of Changing Places toilets.

 

For Sarah, this is personal as her son, Hadley, needs Changing Places toilets. Without them, he faces undignified and unsanitary conditions. This is the motivation behind Sarah’s latest awareness raising campaign. She wanted to challenge the taboo of talking about toilets and what goes on inside them.

 

Speaking about why she has taken on the challenge Sarah said:
“I feel that the stigma around poo and wee and periods is half of the battle we face as campaigners. Nobody wants to talk about what we do in the loo, so getting media coverage is not easy. And without that coverage and pressure, it's so hard to convince businesses to do the right thing when current legislation is not being enforced. So I decided to try to break down just a little bit of that stigma by showing myself using the loo. After all, we all have to pee, it's nothing to be ashamed of.

I felt that Christmas might be a good time to try to do this (as although disabled people can feel isolated and left out at any time of year, it feels particularly brutal and unfair when everyone else gets to let their hair down and enjoy so many different activities) but had no idea that photos of myself on the toilet would get so much positive attention. It has been incredible and I just hope it helps a little to make this a topic that people care more about. There is nothing festive about having to lie on a toilet floor. And we all have a responsibility to do something about it.”

Sarah’s brave and creative campaigning has now caught the eye of celebrities who have been showing their support. Adam, Alex and Josh, the stars of Channel 4’s the Last Leg, and Paralympian Hannah Cockcroft have taken their own toilet selfies to raise awareness of the importance of Changing Places toilets.

 

We are in awe of Sarah for taking on this challenge and spreading vital awareness of Changing Places toilets. You can see all of Sarah’s #LooAdvent selfies on her Twitter account: https://twitter.com/SazBrisdion

Our Christmas wish is that you show her your support and help her in spreading the word about Changing Places toilets far and wide.