Lack of public toilets in Scarborough highlighted as council considers 50p fee
A lack of town centre public toilets in a North Yorkshire resort has been highlighted by councillors as the cost of ‘spending a penny’ could rise to 50p.
A majority of public conveniences maintained by North Yorkshire Council are on the coast, but residents in Scarborough have said there are a lack of accessible toilets in the town centre.
NYC is set to introduce a “consistent entry fee” across the county of either 40p or 50p per user for 2026-27.
Following the creation of the new North Yorkshire Council in April 2023, the authority took over responsibility for operating 85 traditional toilets and eight Changing Places facilities.
“Public conveniences are spread throughout North Yorkshire, with most sites being within the former Scarborough Borough Council and Harrogate Borough Council localities,” according to a new report.
Speaking at a meeting of Scarborough Town Council on Wednesday (January 21), Cllr Rich Maw said: “I continue to receive a high volume of correspondence about a lack of accessible public toilets in Scarborough.
“Particularly from elderly residents, parents, people with medical conditions, mothers and visitors. I’ve related residents’ experiences and written to the relevant NYC executive board and office to seek clarity on the ongoing public conveniences review and what is being done specifically for Scarborough town centre, and what interim measures are in place.”
According to a recent online poll by the Scarborough United action group, the lack of provision of public toilets is one of the top concerns for residents in the town.
As of 2024, there were 26 per cent fewer council-run toilets in North Yorkshire than a decade prior.
The provision of public toilets had also decreased by almost 10 per cent in the former Scarborough borough area, including Filey and Whitby, a Freedom of Information (FOI) request by the Local Democracy Reporting Service revealed.
Commenting on the provision of public toilets earlier this month, Cllr Janet Jefferson said: “Toilets are important to people, but I was quite surprised at how many we actually publicly maintained. I think in Scarborough we’ve probably got more than anywhere else in the county.
“A toilet is essential to people and that’s why people feel they have to speak about it.”
She highlighted that the closure of the Brunswick shopping centre and the loss of access to its public conveniences while it is redeveloped into a cinema had had a major impact.
“We have them in the Brunswick and when the Brunswick’s developed, we’ll get them back again,” she added.
In addition to Changing Places facilities, there are 76 traditional disabled toilets in the publicly accessible network managed by North Yorkshire Council, which also financially supports the provision of two toilets through the community toilet scheme, whereby the council provides revenue support for third party operators.
A meeting of the authority’s transport, economy, environment and enterprise overview and scrutiny committee is set to discuss the recommendation on Wednesday, January 28.