Teignbridge District Council has revealed the 13 public conveniences it wants to divest as part of a cost-cutting exercise.

The Council will discuss proposals to reduce the number of public toilets it operates at a meeting next Wednesday (July 29).

The asset-shedding is part of a wider plan to save £2.6 million per year through the Modern 25 transformation programme. Divesting 15 public conveniences, either through transferring the toilets to town and parish councils or through closures, would save Teignbridge £267,836 per year.

Decisions about which toilets it would continue to operate and which it would divest were made after a public consultation and a review in which each of the facilities were scored on criteria including: usage, costs, and strategic importance, based on whether there are disabled facilities, are linked to other Teignbridge assets, how easy they would be to dispose of and whether the facilities could be repurposed.

Toilets rated as ‘in scope’ for disposal or closure are:

- Ashburton, Kingsbridge Lane

- Starcross Strand

- Widecombe-in-the-Moor

- Newton Abbot, Cricketfield Road

- Dawlish, Barton Hill

- Moretonhampstead, Court Street

- Kingsteignton, The Fountain

- Dawlish, Sandy Lane

- Lustleigh

- Newbridge, Widecombe-in-the-Moor

- Shaldon, The Strand

- Chudleigh, Car Park

- Buckfastleigh, Victoria Park

Newton Abbot’s Market Walk toilets are set to remain closed until the Market Hall redevelopment is complete. The redevelopment includes street-level toilets and Teignbridge anticipates that these will be incorporated into the new Market Hall management contract.

In Teignmouth, Teignbridge plans to close the Point toilets once Teignmouth Town Council has completed the construction of its toilet blocks around the town.

Public conveniences that Teignbridge intends to continue to manage:

- Dawlish, Boat Cove

- Dawlish, Lawn

- Dawlish Warren, Beach Walk

- Shaldon, Ness Tunnel

- Dawlish Warren, Car Park Beach Road

- Newton Abbot, Station Road

- Newton Abbot, Decoy Park

Teignbridge warned, however, that it would continue to review potential transfers of these ‘out of scope’ toilets and would also consider implementing charges to use the facilities.

The toilets in Baker’s Park in Newton Abbot, which have recently been redeveloped, already operate a payment system, Teignbridge points out.

Teignbridge insists that the aim of the review is not to close toilets, but to work closely with town and parish councils to maintain provision and, where possible, transfer the management of toilets to them.

‘The decision to reduce any valued service provided by the council is a difficult one. The impacts of the proposed future public conveniences provision in the district must be balanced with the Council’s requirement to remain financially viable,’ the report states.

In the report that will be discussed on Wednesday, Teignbridge acknowledges that ‘a reduction in public convenience provision could deter visitors’. However, it suggests that divesting toilets ‘could provide opportunities for local businesses to offer the use of their facilities and increase business opportunities’.

The optimism does not appear to be shared by residents. According to the results of the public consultation, 97% of the 5,447 respondents said they would not be prepared to open toilets to members of the public.

Teignbridge hopes it will be able to transfer toilets to interested town and parish councils by April 2027, which would give them enough time to agree the necessary council tax increases to cover the costs of running the facilities.

It points out that many local councils already operate public toilets, including Abbotskerswell, Bishopsteignton, Bovey Tracey, Christow, Exminster, Ipplepen, Kingskerswell, Teignmouth and Ogwell.

However, some councils are concerned that they would be unable to cover the costs of running the facilities.

Shaldon Parish Council has set up a petition to ask Teignbridge to preserve its Strand toilets that has already attracted more than 2,500 signatures. The petition points out that the financial burden of transferring the cost of maintaining the facilities to the Parish would be prohibitive.

A petition, signed by nearly 1,400 people, has also been set up to oppose the closure of the toilets in Ashburton and Newbridge pointing out that closing the facilities will be particularly detrimental to those with disabilities. Residents are also concerned that closing the toilets at Newbridge, which already struggles with litter and waste during the summer, could result in a public health issue.