Despite their new responsibility for public health, cash-strapped councils are increasingly shutting down public toilets. The impact on public sector workers, local communities and the economy is no joking matter
The coalition's slash and burn attitude to council funding and local services is working its way through the system to public lavatories - and so to UNISON members who work outside. They must now join members of the public scouring their town centres and neighbourhoods for somewhere to go, often in contravention of their legal entitlement to adequate toilet facilities.
And despite local government's new responsibility for public health, many councils are showing remarkable insouciance about their employees' and local residents' need to answer the call of nature.
Street sweepers, refuse collectors, PCSO's, school crossing patrol workers, paramedics and school bus escorts are among the groups of UNISON members who report to us that they are increasingly challenged when seeking toilet facilities on the job. The law requires employers to provide employees with 'adequate' toilet and washing facilities which are clean, well-lit, with hot and cold running water, soap and a means of drying hands. Separate provision is sometimes required for men and women.
So how does this pan out for outside workers? Not well at all it seems, with effective health and safety assessments few and far between.
The impact of the closure of public loos of course goes beyond UNISON members caught short in working hours. The recent occupation of a threatened public convenience in Bath demonstrates the growing strength of feeling among the public as the basic human right to go is increasingly denied. Pregnant women, men with prostate problems, the elderly and disabled and those with children face particular anxiety when out and about if they can't access a public loo quickly.
Some councils have made light of their concerns and pointed to toilets in pubs, restaurants and cafes as alternatives. However, we all know how prevalent that 'For Customers Use Only' sign has become and it's unlikely that most restaurants would welcome their local bin man or street sweeper in to use the loo in opening hours.
The coalition's 40% cut in council budgets was sure to impact on already dwindling public lavatory provision sooner or later. That moment has surely arrived according to UNISON's analysis of local authorities' expenditure on it in 2012/2013 and reports posted by the British Toilet Association on its excellent web site. UNISON's scrutiny of DCLG figures shows that between 2010/11 and 2012/13, expenditure on public toilets fell by 13% - £10.4 million - and saw provision in the North West and London particularly badly hit.
That's no surprise in the North West - the target of disproportionate Pickling along with other Labour areas in the North - where Manchester City Council alone responded to cuts two years ago by announcing that only one toilet would remain in the city centre, while Sefton's recent answer has been to increase charges. In boom-town central London, no doubt the good burghers see enough restaurants and cafes springing up to think they can duck their responsibilities as employers and promoters of good health and make the shocking 30% reduction in public loo provision highlighted by UNISON.
Eleswhere in England, only the South West slightly increased expenditure - perhaps to ensure the comfort of its vital tourist base. East Midlands, the North East and South East maintained over 90% of 2010/11 spending, while in other regions, cuts hovered around 20%. With a further 10% assault on funding for councils announced by Chancellor Osborne in his 2013 budget, we must surely expect an even bigger decline in bog standards in the future!
The British Toilet Association reports that things are no better in Wales and Scotland either, with Powys wanting to transfer 38 public loos to private or community providers and Camarthenshire and Pembrokeshire amongst other Welsh councils making closures too. In Scotland, coastal venues in Fife are among those feeling the pressure. Many of the loos affected across the UK are in prime tourist areas with councils increasingly looking to tea shops and restaurants to fill the gap.
The demise of public conveniences has implications far beyond short-term embarrassment for UNISON members and shoppers unable to spend a penny. First there's the public health risk created by the growing incidence of the desperate relieving themselves in the street and up alleyways. Mostly men - who find it easier - of course, but those with children increasingly report having to resort to such emergency measures. If you thought the days of 'gardez l'eau' were over, then think again. Those wanting a return to Victorian values are seemingly also keen on mediaeval sanitation.
Then there's the personal health risks - especially for those with kidney and bladder disorders, prostate problems and for pregnant women. The British Stroke Association has also pointed out that those most vulnerable to strokes are at greater risk when confronted with the stress of nowhere to go - stress that's no doubt bad news for those with heart complaints too.
Last - but certainly not least - is the economic impact of the New Public Inconvenience. Many complaints come from businesses and holiday makers in tourist areas where toilets have either been closed altogether or are shut in the winter. From Cornwall to Northumberland, Pembrokeshire to Fife the impact on holiday trade has been the cause of complaints to councils. And shoppers who can't spend a penny when out shopping locally are less likely to spend more than a dime in local businesses and help the economy get back on its feet again.
So what is to be done? Cutting public loo provision means short-term gain for long-term pain. It makes no sense at all when set against local government's new and entirely appropriate responsibility for public health. Those councils with transferred NHS funding should look to deploy some of it in maintaining or expanding public toilets, which should also be regarded as central to economic development and regeneration.
Councils should also ensure that they really do have 'due regard' to the equality implications of reducing public convenience and last - but not least - they need to comply with the law which requires them to ensure that their employees have access to adequate toilet facilities. Who knows? There might be a positive chain reaction.
