MANY people will be concerned by the announcement from Bradford Council that it’s planning to close public toilets throughout the district as part of its bid to find £82 million of cuts over the next two years.

It’s no surprise the Council is looking at these sorts of areas but giving people the ability to visit conveniences when they are out shopping or carrying out other activities in town centres is akin to a basic human right.

The situation is made worse by the fact that most pubs and restaurants discourage people from using their facilities unless they are a paying customer.

There’s also a degree of British reticence when it comes to asking for the use of them if people are caught short.

In particular, the closure of public toilets will make life very difficult for young children and older people, who are more likely to have an urgent requirement for these facilities. In that sense, the closure of toilets could further isolate older people within their own community, as many could find it tricky to visit shops if they fear they may not have the comfort of being able to use facilities if needed.

Therefore, it’s important that a solution is found to prevent these public amenities being lost forever.

One of the most sensible arrangements might be to hand over the running of such facilities to town or parish councils, where they exist.

We suspect that the majority of people would be happy to spend an extra penny or two on their local council precepts if it means they can spend a penny while out and about in village and town centres in the future.