So many accessible toilets!
4
4
Date of visit: July 2025
I am a disabled person. I have experience of challenges around: a hidden impairment and moving around.
I use or have experience of: hidden impairment, powerchair, walking aid
Overall Rating
Good
I am sure there are lots of lovely things to browse and buy at the John Lewis in Victoria Leeds and you can even get a new kitchen while you are at it, but the thing that put this department store on my radar (pun intended) was my search for accessible toilets. I had been asking around Kirkgate Market for a Changing Places toilet and many people told me to go to the John Lewis across the road. The Changing Places bathroom is not actually there, but in the shopping centre it is attached to, but I did find accessible bathrooms on every one of the five floors of this massive shop!
Disabled Access In and Around
Good
You can enter the John Lewis via the Victoria shopping centre on the ground floor through automatic sliding doors or from the Victoria multi-story car park on the ground floor (car park level 1) and third floor (car park level 6). All the entrances are step-free and the floors are connected by escalators and three large lifts. The lift buttons have high contrast raised numbers, but do not have Braille markings. There are handrails all around the sides and a mirror at the back of the lift. There is a list of what to find on every floor posted above the lift buttons, but the writing is quite small. You can find this information on larger signs in other places around the store, for example at the entrance from the car park or by the escalators in the middle of the shop. The floor is smooth and level throughout and the walkways are wide enough for my powerchair (62 cm) and then some. The cafés on the first and fourth floors have plenty of moveable seating. The café counter on the first floor is a decent height for wheelchair users. There are plenty of sockets in the fourth floor café. I found the noise level to be quite low and there was no music playing when I visited.
Accessible facilities: Lift to all areas, Step-free entrance, Accessible retail space, Wheelchair-accessible food and beverage outlet, Step-free route with firm surface from car park to entrance
Parking & Transport
Excellent
I travelled to this place by walk or wheel
This John Lewis is just across the road from Leeds Bus Station and close to bus stops on Vicar Lane (Victoria 7, 7A, 7S56, 64, 116, 200, 201, 202, 203, 229, 254, 255) and Eastgate (56). There is some on-street parking in George Street and the department store is directly connected to a multi-storey car park with EV charging.
Accessible facilities: Electric Vehicle Charging, Dedicated on-site parking
Accessible Toilets
Good
There is an accessible bathroom on every floor. The one on the first floor is slightly larger with a door opening to the inside and located further from the lifts. You can find it by keeping to the right side of the store as you leave the lifts, past the café, in the same area as the other toilets. The disabled bathrooms on the other floors are all around the corner to the left as you exit the lifts. None of the doors are automatic. A word of warning: There are anti-theft alarms at the entrances to the toilet area (first floor) and by the doors to the disabled bathrooms (other floors), which I set off almost every time, maybe because of my powerchair. They do not go on for long, but it is a very loud noise close to you, which can be a bit scary. Ground floor, second and fourth floor: The door opens to the outside right. No key is needed to access the bathroom. There is no door opener. The handle on the outside is a lever handle. There is a handrail on the back of the door and it locks by lifting up the handle. There is a large mirror and a dispenser for sanitary products on the wall to your right when you come in. The sink is on the wall to your left. The toilet and the bin are on the back wall. There is a fixed vertical and a horizontal handrail to the left of the toilet that can be lifted and moved out of the way and a fixed horizontal handrail on the wall to the right of the toilet. The flush is a lever on the wall behind the toilet. The toilet paper dispenser is to the right of the toilet and below is a narrow sanitary bin with a foot pedal. There is also a colostomy shelf in the corner to the right. There is space for a right-side transfer, although the bin might get in the way. The red cord is to the right of the toilet and the sink. The red cord hung to a few centimeters above the floor. There are vertical handrails on either side of the sink. The sink is a small wall-mounted sink and the tap has a short lever. There is a liquid soap dispenser above the sink. There is no mirror above the sink. There is only a hand dryer, no paper towels. The hand dryer is to the left of the sink. There is a large bin with a swing lid in the corner next to the toilet. Third floor: Mirrored from the ones on the ground, second and fourth floor. The door opens to the outside left. The sink is on the wall to your right. There is space for a left-side transfer, although the bin might get in the way. There is a fixed vertical and a horizontal handrail to the right of the toilet that can be lifted and moved out of the way and a fixed horizontal handrail on the wall to the left of the toilet. The flush is a lever on the wall behind the toilet. The toilet paper holder is to the left of the toilet and below is a narrow sanitary bin with a foot pedal. There is also a colostomy shelf in the corner to the left. The red cord is to the left of the toilet and the sink. The red cord hung to a few centimeters above the floor. The hand dryer is to the right of the sink. First floor: The door opens to the inside. No key is needed to access the bathroom. There is no door opener. The handle on the outside is a lever handle. There is a handrail and a coat hook high up on the back of the door and it locks by lifting up the handle. There is a larger mirror on the wall to your left when you come in. The sink is on the wall opposite the door. The toilet and the bin are on the right wall. There is a fixed vertical and a horizontal handrail to the left of the toilet that can be lifted and moved out of the way and a fixed horizontal handrail on the wall to the right of the toilet. The flush is a lever on the wall behind the toilet. The toilet paper dispenser is to the right of the toilet. There is also a (colostomy?) shelf in the corner to the right that was used for toilet paper rolls when I visited. There is space for a right-side transfer. (There was a wet floor sign in the transfer space, though) The red cord is to the right of the toilet. The red cord hung to the floor. There are vertical handrails on either side of the sink. The sink is a small wall-mounted sink and the tap has a short lever. There is a liquid soap dispenser above the sink. There is no mirror above the sink. There is only a hand dryer, no paper towels. The hand dryer is to the left of the sink. There is a large bin with a swing lid in the corner to your right when you come in.
Facilities: Accessible toilet
Staff
Good
My first point of call was the information point on the ground floor. The staff were not familiar with the Changing Places toilet – fair enough, since it was not actually in their store – but they took my inquiry seriously and showed me where to find the regular disabled bathrooms.
