Have your say on the future of council-run public toilets

Do you use council-run public toilets? How often do you use them, and which ones do you rely on the most?

These are among the questions being asked by Bridgend County Borough Council in a consultation over the public toilets that can be found in Maesteg, Bridgend and Porthcawl.

As the council tackles the conundrum of balancing a severely reduced budget with demands for public services, it has had to reduce the number of council-run toilets in the three town centres from nine to six over the last couple of years.

Now, faced with further financial pressures, the council is inviting views from residents and visitors on how and where public toilets should be provided.

The toilets in question are those at Griffin Park, John Street and Rest Bay in Porthcawl, as well as the Bus Station and Cheapside (opposite Asda) in Bridgend, and at Maesteg Bus Station.

Due to the financial situation we simply cannot continue to run public toilets in the way that we do now.

Some may have to close, while others may need to be run differently in the future. But to help inform these decisions we want to gather public opinion to find out which toilets are used the most and how important these facilities are to our communities.

Councillor Richard Young, Cabinet Member for Communities.

“We are already in advanced talks about the Griffin Park toilets transferring to Porthcawl Town Council, and are looking at whether other public conveniences could also transfer for town councils to operate.  

“We are also keen to find out what sort of demand there is for us to extend our current comfort scheme, which makes small grants of up to £500 per year available to local town centre businesses that are willing to open up their toilets to non-paying customers.” 

To have your say, please complete the online survey here before the deadline of 4 April. Various alternative formats are also available, and you can find out more by calling 01656 643664 or emailing consultation@bridgend.gov.uk