A North Humberside building firm was fined for not providing adequate toilet and washing facilities for staff on a construction site. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Bryan Brown & Son, of Flamborough, Bridlington, after finding problems on the site which the firm then failed to remedy.
A bomb was found and defused at a toilet in the United States. An attendant who went to service a portable toilet at a Tacoma Public Utilities transfer station opened the door and spotted what appeared to be a pipe bomb with a fuse sticking out. However, she called 911 to inform the emergency services, the area was cordoned off and the Pierce County sheriff’s bomb disposal unit rendered the device safe.
A shortage of public toilets results in certain groups feeling anxious about going out.
Statistics show 900,000 fewer crimes occured in England and Wales last year – lower than when Labour assumed government in 1997. There were an estimated 9.6 million crimes in 2009/10, compared with 10.5m in the previous 12 months, according to figures released by the British Crime Survey (BCS) this week. Theft fell by 28 per cent in the BCS but follows a 25% rise last year and police statistics showed a 3% increase – the first since 2005/06.
The charity Is There An Accessible Loo? (ITAAL) was born in 1997 when a group of disabled women – fed up with not being able to travel locally, regionally or nationally because they did not know where accessible WCs were – got together to compile a directory of accessible WCs. Also they felt there should be an organisation to highlight the problems faced by disabled people and to campaign for improvements.
Our Toilet Turnstiles have the safety seal of approval after we passed accreditation this year for SAFEContractor, a scheme which recognises high health and safety standards among UK contractors. We take pride in the installation of top quality turnstiles, and our company Tensor plc is glad that SAFEContractor agrees, which is why they have awarded us their annual certificate.
Burglars stole cash from a ladies’ toilet block in Skegness in Lincolnshire earlier this month. The offenders forced entry through a skylight. They broke into the change machine and turnstile unit, which was in Tower Gardens, stealing a large sum of money in. Anyone with information on this or other crimes should contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, at www.crimestoppers-uk.org/ to use the secure online form.
People, particularly older people, link public toilets with anti-social behaviour, as confirmed in a study done by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, which cited examples of drug-taking in public toilets. London Underground admits that charges for some of their public toilets are made "for a variety of historical reasons, including discouraging anti-social behaviour."
Now as the holiday season approaches, do you know what should be high on the list of priorities for a seaside or historic town’s amenities, and which every man, woman or child needs? Not ice cream, not sand, not a theme park, but a toilet.
Public toilets are a basic need regardless of age, creed or gender. Although details are scarce, according to Government figures there has been a consistent downward trend. Among the most reliable current figures is Valuation Office Agency data on the number of toilets with a rateable value. This shows a decrease from 5,410 toilets in 2000 to 4,423 in 2008.