British Toilet Association (BTA) Campaign – CWU Support – Itinerant/Peripatetic Workers & Public – Access To Toilets
Following an approach by the Board of the British Toilet Association (BTA) requesting our support for their recently launched National campaign, the CWU National Health, Safety and Environment Department has given its full support to the BTA campaign, calling for:
- All public authorities and publically owned organisations to create and implement a national and local strategy for the provision of toilets and local strategy for theprovision of toilets for the public (We have added ‘and for itinerant/peripatetic workers such as Postal and Telecom Workers).
- A commissioner or ombudsman to be created with responsibility for overseeing such plan,s co-ordination and implementation.
The overwhelming majority of CWU members work away from a fixed workplace, in Royal Mail/Parcelforce, either on Royal Mail foot delivery work or in Royal Mail/Parcelforce vehicles carrying out deliveries, collections, distribution and haulage. Likewise, the majority of our BT members work outdoors in various locations. Therefore, toilet access is very important and in many cases it can be a challenging problem. When planning postal worker delivery rounds, a key component is assessing and building in and making arrangements for toilet access points.
In 2020 the CWU and TUC made representation to government agencies on this matter. See attached CWU Letter to Branches 355/20 and a letter jointly issued by the DOT and HSE in response to our representations made by the TUC, CWU and other trade unions regarding ongoing problems being experienced by driver members performing work or undertaking collections, deliveries, haulage etc. The response was a letter produced by the Department for Transport (DOT) and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), to reassure drivers, and to remind businesses of their obligations under the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, to provide suitable toilet and hand washing facilities to drivers visiting their premises. (See copies attached for your information).
The CWU supports the promotion of toilet provision and access plus the highest possible standards of hygiene in all ‘away from home and away from work base’ toilet facilities across the United Kingdom.
We all need to use the toilet several times each day when we are away from our homes, at work, on holiday or simply commuting from place to place. This becomes even more urgent if you belong to one of the many specialist user groups who suffer from medical conditions that require you to have immediate access to the toilet. Having access to clean, hygienic toilets when we need one is both a basic human right, a health and safety at work right and it fulfils an important requirement.
Local authority spending on public toilets in England declined by 50 per cent in the decade 2009-19 according to a BBC analysis which showed a significant drop in the number of public toilets across the UK. (The information source being the Local Authority revenue expenditure and financing collection details published by the Ministry of Communities, Housing and Local Government).
While anyone can find themselves ‘caught short’, for some people this happens more than others. Women have more reasons and take longer to use the toilet than men, for example due to periods or pregnancy, and the lack of equality provision for Women is well-recognised.
For people living with bladder and bowel conditions, lack of facilities is a major problem. And if the toilet isn’t accessible then the impact is the same as no toilet at all. Transgender and gender non-conforming people, sometimes denied access or harassed in public toilets, may
avoid them due to safety concerns. Additionally, disabled people frequently encounter inaccessible toilets, including those that are intended to be accessible. This is also about the infrastructure around the toilet, for example the signage and general accessibility of the building.
This issue is not yet getting the attention it deserves. Talking about toilets tends to provoke discomfort for a variety of social and cultural reasons and people are often reluctant to talk openly about toilets. But going to the toilet is a universal human need, and the facilities available to us can have a significant impact on our health.
At an individual level, there are physical and mental health consequences when adequate public or alternative toilet facilities are not available. People report dealing with a lack of access to toilets by restricting fluid intake and ‘holding on’, leading to risk of dehydration, UTIs and potential kidney damage. For some disabled people, the lack of accessible toilets has led to otherwise preventable surgical interventions. There are also social impacts, where people are forced to plan ahead and restrict their outings to places they feel confident they will find a toilet. Others simply don’t go out, putting them at risk of social isolation. Itinerant workers have no choice as they have to go where their job takes them.
A lack of adequate public toilets will therefore affect public health interventions that encourage people to go out and about locally, for example to increase physical activity and reduce obesity. Public toilets are a key part of our built environment and thus part of its impact as a wider determinant of health, an important feature of the places we live in, and having an influence on our health behaviours and lifestyles. It therefore makes sense that adequate public toilet facilities are part of efforts to improve population health.
A number of organisations and campaigns continue to call for more and better public toilet provision, set against the steadily decreasing funding in local authorities. No one body holds overall responsibility for public toilets and there is no compulsory provision in legislation. Campaigns have led to some additional national funding for Changing Places toilets (larger accessible toilets for severely disabled people, with equipment such as hoists, curtains, adult-sized changing benches and space for carers) in sites such as motorway services area, shopping centres and hospitals etc. With the exception of this, however, there appears to be very little activity on a national level from the relevant government departments and authorities. There does not seem to be a coordinated approach to addressing the reduction in public toilet facilities across the country. This seems like a missed opportunity to address an issue with a significant health impact.
Many local authorities have looked for alternatives to publicly maintained facilities, for example, community toilet schemes where businesses make their toilets available for the public in return for a financial incentive from their local council. However, concerns have been raised that these schemes are not adequately accessible and don’t meet the needs of a diverse population that includes people from different religious backgrounds, people of different ages and homeless people. Clearly there’s a need for more toilets and more access to those that already exist because there’s no argument about the inadequacy of current provisions.
The Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) published a report entitled ‘Taking The P*** – (The Decline Of The Great British Toilet)’ in May 2019, on the findings of a survey that gave insight into public toilet access across the UK. A copy is attached. The key findings and and recommendations were:
Key Findings:
- The increasing decline in public toilets is a threat to health, mobility, and equality.
- The lack of public toilets disproportionately affects people with ill health or disability,
the elderly, women, outdoor workers and the homeless. - Three in four of the UK public think there are not enough public toilets in their area.
- Knowledge of lack of facilities nearby acts as a ‘loo leash’, deterring as many as one
in five (20%) from venturing out of their homes as often as they would like. This rises
to over two in five (43%) among those with medical conditions requiring frequent
toilet use. - Over half (56%) of the public restrict fluid intake due to concern over lack of toilet
Deliberate dehydration can seriously affect health and exacerbate existing
medical problems.
Report Recommendations:
- The Government should make the provision of public toilets compulsory on a well planned and regulated basis.
- Potty parity laws should be emulated in the UK to ensure fair provision for women.
- The Government should reverse years of funding cuts to local authorities and invest in our civic infrastructure.
- National and local government should pilot innovative new ways of financing public toilets, including a ‘spend a penny’ campaign.
- Break down the toilet taboo: public loos and their role in assisting hygiene, hydration,
exercise and more must be more freely addressed in public health discourse.
(A Copy of the report is attached for your information).
Researchers in ‘urban planning’ and disability studies have created various guides for good practice in toilet provision. Ensuring public toilets are consistently on health agendas would seem to be a key part of ensuring decent access for all.
‘Just Can’t Wait’ Cards
They are ‘credit card size’ and can be downloaded and printed. They can be ordered in plastic or cardboard versions and there is also a ‘free’ digital version available to download onto ‘smartphones’. These cards are promoted, produced and made available by a number of charities in various formats and can be obtained from these organisations, especially for those with bladder or bowel conditions.
The following stores have accessible toilets for those people who hold this card:
- Co-Op (4,050 stores)
- M&S (Over 950 stores)
- Argos (over 800 stores)
- Superdrug (over 800 stores)
- Waitrose (349 stores)
- B&Q (Over 300 stores)
- White Stuff (Over 100 stores)
- Zara (Over 100 stores)
- Plus many others
These Toilet Access Cards:
- Provide access to toilets not normally available to the general public.
- Are a discreet, clear communication when you just can’t wait to use the toilet.
- Are widely accepted at many cafes, restaurants, shops, entertainment venues and other businesses.
- Are available in card, plastic versions or on a phone.
- The ‘digital’ ‘Just Can’t Wait’ card is now available to download to smartphones on the ‘Bowel and Bladder’ Community Website. Fill out a few details and be guided to download the card instantly. All that’s needed is an Apple Wallet or Google Wallet. Alternatively, plastic cards can be purchased by post or printed locally on a standard colour printer onto card or paper.
Bowel & Bladder Community Website:
Or Email: Email:help@bladderandbowel.org
(Copy of ‘Just Can’t Wait’ Card Attached)
Other organisations offering these Cards;
- https://crohnsandcolitis.org.uk/get-involved/become-a-member/cant-wait-card
- https://www.theibsnetwork.org/cant-wait-card/
- https://prostatecanceruk.org/prostate-information/our-publications/publications/urgent-toilet-card
Attachments:
- Letter from BTA Board Member
- LTB355/20
- Letter from DFT & HSE
- RSPH Report ‘Taking The P—-‘
- Just Can’t Wait Card – Card & Digital Images
Yours sincerely
Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer
Coun.Stephen Mercer (BTA) Public Toilet Access 26.01.24
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CWU Eastern No5 Branch 