Highland Council Committee Confirms Public Conveniences Action Plan

28th November 2024

Members of the Highland Council's Community and Place Committee have given their support to an action plan focusing on the operating of public conveniences over the next 10 years.

Whilst not a statutory function, the Council is the main provider of public conveniences located throughout Highland, operating 74 sites.

The Approach and Action Plan presented to the Committee today sets out a strategy for investment in public convenience should funding become available.

Chair of the Committee, Councillor Graham MacKenzie said: "Whilst not a statutory function, the Council is the main provider of public conveniences located throughout Highland. They are an essential part of a community and contribute to all aspects of the Council’s strategic priorities of sustainable tourism, health and wellbeing, and inclusion of communities.

“We are committed to providing accessible, safe, and clean public conveniences to communities and visitors to the area. The Action Plan we have given our support to sets out how decisions can be made based on agreed criteria to ensure best value is demonstrated, whether it is in repairing, renewing, transferring to a community or closing a site."

The Capital Programme approved by Council on 14 September 2023 includes annual provision for Public Toilets of £33k for 2024/25 up to 2028/29. The proposals in the Action Plan would be subject to additional funding becoming available.

Councillor MacKenzie added: “We accept that the capital and revenue funding is accepted to be minimal in the coming years. It is therefore important that a strategic approach is taken to investing in, and maintaining, public conveniences, now and in the future.”

The Approach and Action plan will guide the provision of public conveniences that are owned and/or managed by the Council. There are other public conveniences located throughout the area which are not managed by the Council such as those in libraries, community hubs, recreation centres. There are also public conveniences in the region which are provided by other operators under the Council’s Comfort Scheme.

Comfort scheme providers receive a grant for allowing the public to use their facilities as a public convenience without a transaction being required. Comfort Schemes can be found in community halls, restaurants, cafes, ex Council public conveniences and recreational centres and provide a source of income to participating groups.

Any community group or local business interested in finding out more about the Council’s Comfort Scheme can do so be emailing Highlandcomfortscheme@highland.gov.uk