Public Toilets in Lynmouth – Ongoing Issues & Community Concerns

 

The discussion around the public toilets in Lynton & Lynmouth is far from over, with ongoing frustrations for both residents and councillors.

Since the installation of the paid entry system, both the Memorial Hall and Lower Lyndale toilets have been targeted by repeated vandalism—leading to unexpected repair costs, closures, and significant loss of income for Lynton & Lynmouth Town Council.

 

To add to the frustration, the winter closure of the toilets caused upset for Cllr Adrian Hobbs, a Lynmouth business owner, who noted increased visitor footfall while the facilities remained shut. His request to reopen them for February half-term was met with a flat response from Town Clerk Kevin Harris: “They’re always closed from October to March.” — with no indication this policy might change to support local tourism or match school holidays in future years.

 

At the last Full Council Meeting, Cllr Hobbs once again raised the topic of public toilet closures. As of now, the Gents toilet at the Memorial Hall remains closed due to faulty equipment. A temporary solution of using the disabled facility is in place. Meanwhile, the company responsible for the paid entry systems—Healthmatic—has still not resolved the issue, despite repeated requests.

 

With the Easter holidays about to hit and with toilet demand at its peak, Councillors agreed at the last Full Council Meeting on 27/03 to open all the toilets in Lynmouth for free until the Gents toilets paid entry system at the Memorial Hall has been repaired – the council agreed that 5 days was enough time to get their answer (this was proposed by Cllr Rodway, seconded, and RESOLVED, but not minuted as such!). Cllr Bell also made an inspired suggestion of installing donation boxes in the now free to use the toilets as a way of recuperating some of the lost income. 

 

However, at the recent Policy and Finance Meeting on 16/04, Cllr Peacock opposed this resolution and insisted that any and all working systems SHOULD be charging and ONLY the Gents should be opened over the Easter weekend without the payment gate in place. Could this be because he had no minutes from the Full Council Meeting three weeks prior to refer to? 

 

There has also been recent activity on Facebook that implies the toilets have not been opened for free use in Lynmouth. This would mean that the council have not carried out their resolution.

 

Finally, after spending over £110,000 with the paid entry system provider Healthmatic (£20,000 of which were pledges from the community) locals are now asking:

• Did the Council act too quickly in choosing Healthmatic?
• Should a donation-based system have been considered instead?
• Would this have reduced vandalism, public backlash, and ongoing costs?
• Will residents ever receive a full update on the paid entry system direct from the council?

What are your thoughts?