A recently-supported toilet strategy is “not a strategy to close toilets,” senior councillors heard.

Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet approved the Local Toilet Strategy 2023 - required under the Public Health (Wales) Act 2017 - at its meeting on Monday, April 24.

It is intended to help address the current challenges faced by local authorities in continuing to sustain provision during times of substantial financial pressures.

Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services Cllr Rhys Sinnett said: “This is not a strategy to close toilets; what we’re looking to do is preserve the maximum possible number in the local network.”

The report says options for future toilet provision include potential additional pay-to-use facilities, working with organisations, town and community councils and local communities to seek funding, encouraging community asset transfers of toilets, encouraging local organisations and businesses to open up their toilets for public use, and a potential future visitor levy to fund provision.

Cllr Sinnett said additional funding from car parking revenue had raised some £208,000 for ’23-’24, which had protected some 20 public conveniences, and the ‘second homes’ council tax contribution had also secured an additional £300,000, which will be used to keep open the rest of the network until November 2023 at the earliest while negotiations with stakeholders including Pembrokeshire Coast National Park continue.

He said the reason partnerships were sought was that public toilet provision is a discretionary rather than a statutory provision.

“We know that toilets are valued as was highlighted not only in the strategy consultation exercise but also through the significant correspondence the council and ourselves as individual members will have received on this matter and that is exactly why we are looking for sustainable operating models for the future.

“The council has worked for a number of years with town and community councils, we know this is a workable option as it has led to the continuing running of 15 facilities in the county; an active dialogue continues with those bodies at this time.”

He stressed: “The existing toilet provision will remain open for this current season and up until the end of November 2023.

“There’s no doubt that funding of local government is in a challenging place; we as a council have to consider as wide a range of funding options as possible, while still maintaining facilities.”

Councillor Jon Harvey agreed: “This is not about closing toilets; public perception is we as an administration are about closing toilets, we’re not.”

He added: “I welcome the assurances we’re doing everything we can to maintain toilets; we have the second highest number of public toilets in the UK other than the Highlands and Islands.”

Cllr Paul Miller, Deputy Leader, made clear his support for keeping as many as possible of the council toilets open.

He added: “It’s clearly not reasonable for some other organisations to receive, in some cases tens of thousands of pounds, of income from car parking, and in some cases additional rental income, but expect Pembrokeshire County Council to pay for the public conveniences in those car parks.

“That’s not fair to council tax-payers and I hope through sensible discussion they come to see this.”

Included in the strategy is the ability for the council to close some toilet facilities where alternative funding, including other public bodies, cannot be found but it is stressed this would be a last resort.