Several public loos are facing the axe in a bid to save tens of thousands of pounds.
Swale council has shortlisted five toilets it is looking to close as part of its belt-tightening measures to balance its increasingly stretched budget.
The list includes four in town centres – the block at the Library Car Park and outside the Forum Shopping Centre in Sittingbourne, the Spinney Green toilets in Leysdown and the toilet in Milton Regis High Street.
The other is the block next to The Whitehouse Restaurant in The Broadway, Minster, which had £10,000 spent on repairs in February 2023 after it had to shut following a fire.
Of the at-risk toilets, only three would be closed if the council decides to go ahead with its cost-cutting scheme.
Altogether, these five loos alone cost the taxpayer more than £120,000 a year to maintain. It is part of the £1.5 million the council is expected to spend on the maintenance of all its toilets from 2023 to 2032.
The Forum and Library facilities are some of the most used in the borough, with only four others being used more – Central Car Park in Faversham, Rose Street in Sheerness, King George V Playing Field in Sittingbourne and Leysdown Beach Services.
Both have around 100 visitors every day on average and cost the council less than 90p per use when weighed up against how much they cost to maintain.
If they were to be closed, Sittingbourne town centre would be left without a public toilet.
The Sheppey blocks are used less, with the Whitehouse toilet being used 16 times a day on average at a cost of £4.61 per use, and The Spinney being visited 13 times daily on average, which works out at £3.68 per user.
The Milton High Street toilets also have 13 daily visitors, which costs the taxpayer £2.38 a use.
Swale, which owns 16 public conveniences, is also weighing up whether to hand over seven blocks to parish and town councils for them to look after – with The Spinney making that list as well.
The others are Oare Gunpowder Works Visitors Centre and Central Car Park in Faversham, Rose Street and Beachfields in Sheerness, Leysdown Beach Services, and Queenborough Park.
Meanwhile, the closed blocks in Eastchurch and Rushenden are still on its books. The council doesn’t plan to reopen them and to dispose of or demolish the buildings.
Before any decision is made, councillors will vote on whether to launch a public consultation on the proposals at an environmental services and climate change committee meeting at 7pm tonight (July 10).
If the consultation goes ahead, residents would be surveyed on how regularly they use the toilets and how closures would impact their lives.
Responses from these would influence which of the five would be closed.
A council spokesman said: “These changes will make sure the most-used toilets remain open and are well-maintained, while we work towards a sound financial footing.”
It comes after the council had to fill a £317,000 hole in its 2024/2025 finances with money from its dwindling reserves after some departments spent more than expected.
The spokesman added that the authority was “exploring the option” of working with businesses to create a community toilet scheme, which would see their loos opened up for public use.
Six businesses have already said they would sign up for this, but only two of these are near the proposed closures – The Three Hats pub in Milton High Street and McDonald’s in Sittingbourne Retail Park.
The others are West Faversham Community Centre, McDonald’s in Bobbing, Morrisons supermarket in Neats Court and Castle Connections in Queenborough.
Dolley Wooster, who is the chairman of the committee, says the scheme is part of councillors preparing to transition to a new local authority structure, which is set to be in place from 2028.
The Sheerness representative (Lab) said: “Public toilets are not a statutory service, so it would make more sense to maintain the services we have to provide ahead of local authority changes.
“We have a responsibility to hand over assets which are working and there’s no point handing them off to a new authority in bad shape.
“If councillors agree to go to consultation, I hope that the public takes this opportunity to make themselves heard and tell us what they think.
“Businesses could provide us with accessibility for loos in town centres and our tourist areas, so I am all in favour of the council working with businesses over services.”
Elliott Jayes, who is vice-chairman of the committee, said he hoped more businesses would come forward to take on the role, as he is “concerned” for young families and those with disabilities.
The member for Sheppey Central (Swale Inds) said: “No council wants to have to cut its services, but our budget keeps getting tighter and public toilets are a non-statutory requirement, and they need to be where people use them.
“A lot of the loos we own are pretty grim and cost a lot of money to refurbish, and that money is not there.
“With the Sittingbourne loos, not both of them should be closed.
“As a father myself, I am concerned that young families and those who face accessibility issues do not have access to the right facilities.
“So I am hoping, if the toilets are closed, businesses nearby, such as the Swallows leisure centre, can open their toilets up and that the Forum takes on the block outside its premises.”
