Father’s are being left with no table, no bin for diapers, nothing. What’s a father meant to do? Make their child wait in a soiled nappy till they get home to change them, use the women’s toilet where they might have a changing table or change their baby on the floor of the men’s toilet.

Dads' left with nowhere to change their babies

When I began to write this article I was thinking of a specific example that happened in February this year but upon researching I found out that this is a common occurrence that Dad’s across the globe face. Father’s are being left with no table, no bin for diapers, nothing. What’s a father meant to do? Make their child wait in a soiled nappy till they get home to change them, use the women’s toilet where they might have a changing table or change their baby on the floor of the men’s toilet.

What’s a father meant to do?

Case Study 1: 

Brian Aasen, a father from Calgary went to change his daughter’s diaper and found that there was no change table in the men’s washroom and when he asked the staff about what options he had, he wasn’t happy with their answer. “The choice was either… (the) men’s bathroom floor or -30 C outside in the car,” Aasen said. “I’m going to a family establishment with my daughter on a daddy daughter time, so why can’t I have a place to change my kid’s diaper that’s safe and clean. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”

Ashton Kutcher used his platform to speak up

There are NEVER diaper changing stations in mens public restrooms. The first public men's room that I go into that has one gets a free shout out on my FB page! #BeTheChange

Case Study 2: 

Out on the first quiet meal since his son was born, the father of the 5 month old had no other option but to change his kid in the women’s toilet after he realised their wasn’t a change table in the men’s toilet. The hostess told him he had to leave. He tried to explain there was nowhere else for him to change him and that he was solo parenting so his wife couldn’t do it. "We were starting to attract attention in the restroom at this point and one of the women said, 'I’ve been there with four of my own. I can change him,'" the dad recalled. "The hostess seemed to think that was a suitable compromise, but I wasn’t comfortable leaving my baby alone with a stranger to change him.” The manager was called over and told him to leave. The father stated "I wasn’t about to drive my baby home in a soiled diaper though, so finished up," before leaving. (Click to read the full story)

Photos go viral which sparks the viral project #SquatForChange

A photo of father, Donte Palmer, trying to change his son’s nappy in a public bathroom went viral because it resonated with parents online who have also struggled to find changing areas in public venues. He captioned the images with “What’s the deal with not having changing tables in men’s bathroom as if we don’t exist! Clearly we do this often because look how comfortable my son is. It’s routine to him!!!! Let’s fix this problem!” People around the world voiced their support and started sending in photos of their own similar experiences. The result was Squat For Change, a global campaign to raise awareness of the lack of changing facilities for dads.

While some public spaces have “parent rooms” or “family rooms” for parents of any gender to access, these are far from commonplace. In a modern world where fathers do as much childcare as mothers, the restriction of baby change facilities to mostly women’s restrooms seems archaic and outdated.

The above image is a screenshot of the original Instagram post done by Donte Palmer that started the project #SquatForChange.

Even in designated Parent Rooms, dad’s have been subjected to discrimination.

Case Study 3: 

Just earlier this year, a new father, Troy Tinson, was forced to leave the parent’s change room at a shopping centre in Mandurah, Western Australia. He was met with hostility by a group of three women who wouldn’t let him access the change tables to change his daughter. 'They said there were women breastfeeding in the room and that he wasn't welcome, that he was a male and that there were male toilets that he could access,' Troy's wife Terina told ABC Perth. He ended up having to change his daughter in the sink of the men’s toilet.

Case Study 4: 

Mikaa Ives defended a dad who was being abused by a woman in a shopping centre on the Sunshine Coast. She witnessed a women start abusing the dad for being in the parents room saying ‘it’s only for mothers, get out you sicko’ and then accusing him of “staring at her naked kids” threatened to call security on the dad if he didn’t leave the room. Mikaa Ives stated that the boy didn’t have a clean nappy on when the pair was kicked out, and the pair became distressed about the confrontation. “His son was hysterical and he’s just saying “its okay mate, we’ll go back in there soon”. She called the man back in to finish putting a clean nappy on the child and told him if the other woman ended up calling security on him, she would back him up. “I was absolutely shocked that the poor bloke felt he had no choice but to leave like she said… I was BEYOND disgusted.”

Case Study 5: 

Damien Leeson was publicly shamed by a woman who said he was a 'dirty old man' for taking his seven-week-old baby into the parents room at shopping centre in Mackay, Queensland. 'She looked at me and started laying into me saying that it was "disgusting to see a fully-grown man in a parents' room with a little girl",' Leeson told Daily Mail Australia. He posted his experience on Facebook and he ‘had tonnes of other dads write “that’s normal mate, get used to it”. He stated ‘What’s a bloke supposed to do anyway if he’s a single dad? My point is it’s a parents’ room, not a mothers’ room. There are no change tables in the male bathroom.’

Let's make this a thing of the past. Every parent and child deserves to have access to safe and secure changing facilities in public spaces. 

Cleanpro offers a complete parenting room solution which includes the supply and regular servicing of nappy disposal units and change tables.

Cleanpro even provides instant hand sanitisers, so parents can ensure they have hygienic hands before and after changing their child. So, if your workplace needs baby changing facilities call Cleanpro on (08) 9336 6944.