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21
Apr
‘There is not a free pee’: Councillor rejects calls for free public toilets in North Yorkshire
A senior councillor has responded to calls for public toilets to remain free-of-charge after councillors agreed to introduce a 40p fee to use the facilities.
North Yorkshire Council's Conservative executive met in Ripon this morning (April 21) where councillors agreed adopt an entry charge for toilets.
The council, which is not legally obliged to provide toilets, expects to lose £260,000 providing the service in 2025/26.
Cllr Keane Duncan, the Conservative member for Norton on the council who has run a 'free to pee' campaign, told the executive that toilets were a “basic, fundamental service that should remain free to access”.
Cllr Keane Duncan
He said:
While I recognise the council’s financial position, I do hope that the executive would agree that charging to go to the toilet should never be the council’s first instinct. It should be its last resort and only where it makes practical and financial sense.
However, Cllr Richard Foster, executive councillor for managing our environment at the council, said this was not possible.
He said:
I have heard about the free to pee campaign. It would be great, but there is a cost. Unfortunately, there is not a free pee.
Somebody pays for it somewhere. The cleaning fee, the water rates, the electricity and the consumables that go into toilets have a cost.
North Yorkshire has the largest network of public toilets in the UK. Of the 93 toilets, 65 are free to use.
The Conservative-run council set up a cross-party public conveniences working group last year to find ways to develop the service.
It inherited most of the toilets after it took over from district councils, including Harrogate Borough Council, in April 2023.
Stray Ponds public toilets, with the changing rooms to the rear.
As part of the policy adopted today (April 21), those toilets that are currently free to use will soon become charged-for facilities with an entry fee of 40p.
However, in its report, the council pointed out where it cannot implement charging infrastructure for toilets it will install “physical or digital honesty boxes”.
Meanwhile, some of the council’s public conveniences are in poor condition, have low usage or are already near other loos.
As a result, it plans to close some of these toilets. However, this will be done in consultation with town and parish councils who may wish to take over the operation of such facilities.
You can read our explainer on what the new policy on public toilets means for the Harrogate district here.
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