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FOUR seafront toilet blocks across the conurbation are being refurbished this winter as part of a £300,000 investment.
The upgrades are being made to facilities in Bournemouth West, between Happyland Amusements and the West Beach restaurant, Bournemouth East, next to Harry Ramsden’s fish and chips, Sandbanks, next to the car park near the beach office, and Mudeford Sandbank.
The BCP Board is funding the work, which began at some sites last week, through the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) – contributions obtained from businesses for development projects.
Renovations to the four blocks are due to be completed in the spring of next year, in time for Easter.
Cllr Beverley Dunlop, portfolio holder for Tourism, Culture and Vibrant Places, said: ‘The toilet blocks at Sandbanks, Bournemouth West, Bournemouth East and Mudeford Sandbank see huge footfall, particularly in the summer months, and should benefit from a renovation.
“To improve these facilities, we are using around £300,000 from our Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) fund. This is our levy on new developments in our area, which generates funds which are then earmarked for reinvestment in the local community.
“Work on toilet blocks includes updating buildings and reconfiguring spaces to improve efficiency and sustainability.
“They were due to start last week so some toilets will be closed during this time. Our goal is to have these sites open and ready again for Easter 2023.”
A council report on the seasonal response this summer said extra funding had been made available to provide extra cleaning times for facilities most often used by visitors given the ‘significant increase’ in their use during peak periods.
Andrew Brown, director of seafront operations for the BCP Council, told a recent meeting of the oversight committee that there were around 30 seafront toilet blocks in the conurbation.
“We have a reasonably large supply of toilets on the waterfront and there will always be, as with all resources on the waterfront, pinch points where even if we had double the resources we would have to. huge challenges with the number of visitors,” Brown said.
“For the most part our facilities over the summer have been cleaned, well managed and have likely met the demands of the vast majority of our beach users.”
