Public toilets in Porthcawl to re-open after closure

Residents of Porthcawl had campaigned to keep the public toilets open

A seaside town's public toilets are to re-open after hundreds of New Year visitors found them closed.

The facilities in Porthcawl and two other towns were closed by Bridgend County Borough Council to save money.

Porthcawl Town Council is taking over responsibility and will offer temporary toilets until the block in John Street re-opens on 18 February.

Mike Clarke, who sits on both councils, said: "We really want to do all we can to support a vibrant town centre."

Thousands of people signed a petition against the plans, which also resulted in the closure of public toilets at Griffin Park in Porthcawl, Cheapside in Bridgend, and Maesteg Bus Station.

Porthcawl Town Council had been in discussion with the county council over taking responsibility for the toilets but were unable to act in time to prevent their indefinite closure after the Christmas break.

A sign made it clear the public toilets in Porthcawl were not re-opening after Christmas

A local trader said he counted more than 1,000 people who found the toilets locked when they tried to use them on 2 January.

Councillor Clarke told the Local Democracy Reporting Service he and fellow councillor Brian Jones stepped in to sort out a short-term solution.

"There has been a lot of feedback in the town, particularly among traders, who say a huge number of people have been saying they don't think they'll come back any more due to the closure of the John Street toilets," he said.

"What we are trying to do is demonstrate to traders that we value them in our town centre."

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The temporary toilets, at the back of John Street car park, have been supplied by a local firm.

They include disabled facilities and will be maintained by a team of volunteer town councillors until the Grade II-listed toilet block is ready to re-open.