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10
Feb
Council reveals cost of introducing toilet payment technology
North Yorkshire Council is set to spend £175,000 on installing payment technology to charge for public toilets.
The council revealed plans last month to charge up to 50p to use facilities across the county, while underused or dilapidated conveniences could be closed.
Town and parish councils would also be encouraged to take over the running of local facilities.
However, a decision on the changes was delayed amid concerns that the fee would not wash with the public.
A report due before the council’s ruling Conservative executive on February 17 puts the cost of implementing pay-on-entry technology at 15 sites in the county at £175,000.
The council plans to use money from its strategic capacity reserve to pay for the infrastructure, should the decision to charge for some facilities be approved.
The report said:
By introducing pay-on-entry infrastructure at 15 sites, additional income will be generated from the investment to support the day-to-day operations of the service and reduce the current revenue budget pressure.
Senior councillors will make a decision on the funding next week.
The public toilets on Waterside in Knaresborough.
'Free to pee' campaign
A decision on whether to charge for some public toilets in North Yorkshire was delayed at a meeting this month.
Cllr Carl Les, Conservative leader of the authority, said he had taken the decision to defer the report on public toilets to a later date in order for amendments to the policy to be looked at.
He denied that the item had been pulled from the executive meeting due to pressure from backbench councillors.
Cllr Keane Duncan, Conservative member for the Norton division who launched a “free to pee” campaign over previous plans to charge for conveniences, said he had asked for the council’s executive to take extra time to consider the proposed changes.
He added:
Charging people to use the toilet is unfair and unjust. Thanks to the strength of our community petition, we successfully stopped charges and closures in Malton last year.
With the threat of a toilet tax now looming for the whole of North Yorkshire, I am relaunching my ‘free to pee’ campaign and redoubling efforts to defend this essential service in communities across the county.
I welcome the leader’s decision to postpone this plan, giving time for the full impact of these proposals to be properly and carefully considered.
The authority is currently responsible for 85 traditional toilet blocks and eight Changing Places toilets for disabled people — more than any other council in the UK.
Of the 93, 65 are currently free to use.
The service is forecast to cost the authority £230,000 in 2025/26.
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