Council Leader Confident Seafront Toilets Will Be Retained

The head of a local council has expressed “confidence” that public toilets situated along a resort’s seafront, which had faced potential closure, will continue to operate. Eastbourne Borough Council had been engaging with residents and businesses to identify methods for securing an additional £2.7 million in savings, on top of the £3 million already cut from its current annual budget. Among the proposed reductions under consideration was a plan to replace the seafront public toilets with a community toilet scheme. A petition was subsequently initiated by the Friends of Eastbourne Seafront to safeguard these facilities. Council leader Stephen Holt stated on Tuesday: “I agree with the calls made to protect the toilets in Eastbourne and have been laser focused on doing that. I am now confident that we can keep all the seafront toilets open.” He further added: “We are also negotiating with partners on keeping the other public toilets open across the town. “Officers are bringing forward plans that could see more publicly accessible toilets than ever before. We are discussing 19 potential toilet locations, including in areas where there hasn’t been provision before.” The community toilet scheme would involve local businesses permitting non-customers to utilize their restroom facilities. A series of proposals for potential service cuts, including those affecting the seafront toilets, are scheduled to be presented to the council’s Cabinet committee on 13 November. Mr Holt continued: “We are not alone in having to find savings, the majority of UK councils are in the same boat. East Sussex County Council is currently consulting on savings to address a £55m funding gap.” The council indicated that “unprecedented levels” of temporary accommodation were jeopardizing the financial viability of the authority. In a statement, the council affirmed: “The cost of living crisis and no-fault evictions were both key factors that had led to rising numbers of residents unable to pay their mortgages and rent, leaving them in need of accommodation. “The council is currently spending nearly £5 million a year on temporary accommodation, which is 49p in every pound collected in council tax.”