Charity cyclist Grant Speed hopes the administrative legwork to create a local toilet for those with complex disabilities can begin in earnest after completing his 370-mile trip home from Leeds on Saturday.
Grant was joined by a convoy of cyclists on the final leg from Monifieth to Arbroath harbour, where a toilet roll stretched between two loo brushes marked the finish line of his successful Loo Tour de Britain.
The fundraiser was set up by Grant in a bid to raise £10,000 to see a Changing Places toilet installed in his home town.
The facility is designed to help those with profound and multiple learning disabilities, as well as those with physical conditions and the elderly who need assistance.
Grant, 43, group financial controller for the Jurys Inns hotel group, has seen first-hand the difficulties experienced by his sister, Lois Laird, in finding suitable toilet facilities when she is out and about with her 14-year-old twins, Kein and Kelsey. The family are working closely with Scottish charity PAMIS on the project to fund a facility in Arbroath.
Grant said he hopes Angus will take the first step in following suit, with support for the Loo Tour de Britain already over the £5,000 mark.
“The thing about a toilet like this is that it is not a luxury, it’s providing basic facilities for the needs that people have when they go out for the day,” he said at the end of the rewarding trip.”
The Changing Places toilets are large enough to accommodate a wheelchair and up to two carers, and include an overhead hoist, peninsular basin and height-adjustable changing bench.
Grant admitted the Loo Tour had been a hugely enjoyable way to raise funds and awareness of the Changing Places project and the work that PAMIS does.
He was a tour maker for the opening leg of the Tour de France as it took Yorkshire by storm, and was lucky enough, with sons Jake, 8, and Alex, 5, to meet some of the top riders in the event.
Grant then hit the road himself for a journey in which he was joined by colleagues, friends and sponsors along a route that took in Morpeth, Duns, Edinburgh and then home with his boys also pedalling proudly alongside for the final few miles.
“I’ve followed the tour since the 1980s, and to be part of it by helping out was great,” he said.
Grant also stopped at Holyrood for a brief meeting with North East MSP Alex Johnstone.
“I was delighted to welcome Mr Speed and his supporters to the Scottish Parliament, which is currently having a Changing Places toilet installed, and I was grateful for the opportunity to hear first-hand about the campaign,” he said.
Also at the weekend finish line was Angus councillor David Fairweather, who said he hopes the local authority will look closely at the options for providing a Changing Places toilet in Arbroath.
“This is a magnificent effort by Grant, and PAMIS have also done a fantastic job in raising money and awareness of the difficult situation which many disabled people face when simply wanting to have an enjoyable day out.
“I’ll now be hoping to get the council to look at this and we can hopefully move this idea on and have a Changing Places toilet put in place,” he added.
Grant can still be supported at www.everydayhero.co.uk.