South East councils close dozens of public toilets

More than 110 public toilets have closed across the South East since 2017

Cash-strapped councils across the South East are closing public toilets in a bid to save money.

Data obtained by Politics South East shows district and borough councils have got rid of 117 toilet facilities since 2010 - either by closing them or giving them to other organisations.

In East Sussex, the local authority for Hastings has shut five public toilet facilities over that time.

A Hastings Borough Council spokesman said: "The council’s limited resources will be focused on the remaining 18 high quality public toilets."

Local authorities are not legally obliged to provide or maintain public toilets.

All council-run toilets in Woking have been permanently shut as the local authority attempts to get its finances back on track.

Rother District Council, in East Sussex, closed 12 public toilets as part of a cost-cutting trial.

Its public conveniences in Battle, Rye, Bexhill, Pett Level and Sedlescombe were closed over winter to cut costs.

Health conditions

The lack of public toilets affects some people more than others.

Women have more reasons and take longer to use toilets than men, for example due to periods or pregnancy.

People with bladder and bowel conditions also need them more.

A lack of public toilets also means it is harder for people to go out and about locally, which affects efforts to increase physical activity and reduce obesity.

In a seaside town, it can be particularly challenging too, as some people will go to places where they know there are toilets.

Situation in Hastings

• Cllr Judy Rogers, Labour: "The Labour Party are committed to keeping our toilets open and maintaining them for visitors and residents. We feel this is really important."

• Cllr Michael Edwards, Conservative: "We will be restoring, replacing and upgrading toilets across the borough."

• Cllr Julia Hilton, Green: "As a seaside town, we need to make access to public toilets a priority. People need safe and clean toilets to access."

• Cllr Andy Batsford, Independent: "We believe in keeping public toilets open. There is £300,000 in the can already and we won't do a single thing to our public conveniences without talking to anyone."

The Hastings Borough Council spokesman said: "Over the years a small number of public toilets have been closed, primarily due to anti-social behaviour, making the cost of keeping them prohibitive.

“If anyone spots any issues with our facilities, they can easily report this directly to us."