Highland Council spending £240,000 on public toilets and waste collection for visitors
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
Castletown and John O'Groats are among a number of communities benefiting from a £240,000 investment by Highland Council in public toilets and comfort schemes and increased waste collection at key visitor sites.
The local authority says it is doing all it can to welcome visitors to the region while encouraging them to "leave no trace" on the environment.
The spending on public loos and comfort schemes will amount to £60,000, with £180,000 going on increased waste collection at visitor locations.
Members of the council’s communities and place committee noted an update on the works to date. They also welcomed additional support received from NatureScot’s Better Places fund of £11,000 for public conveniences.
The committee chairman, Councillor Allan Henderson, said: “Highland Council is doing all that it can to welcome visitors to our region. Our Visitor Management Plan strives to support visitors to have a good experience, benefiting local economies, while leaving no trace on our magnificent environment.
“These additional investments have now increased the comfort scheme with 14 new providers and we now have 50 comfort schemes across the region for this season along with the new public convenience at Storr [Skye] coming into operation, with the council now running 75 across the region. I’m grateful to staff for working with business and communities to enhance the service this season."
Public toilets at Storr, Ullapool, Kingussie, Aviemore, Grantown, Dornie, Muir of Ord, Castletown and Foyers are all receiving investment. Additional comfort schemes have been secured this season at Salen, Morar, Rum, Ardnamurchan, Dornoch (2), John O’Groats, Drumnadrochit, Kinlochleven, Glendale, Portree, Kyleakin, Helmsdale and Alness.
Councillor Henderson said: “Officers are continuing to seek more sources of external funding to improve and extend the public toilet and waste collection services. The council is also carrying out property surveys of previously closed public toilets should future funding secured enable any to be reopened.
“An enhanced waste collection service has seen the employment of eight additional seasonal staff who are mobile and responsive to reported waste-related issues.
"I commend the many communities and individuals who have also carried out litter-picking in their areas. Over 60 organised community litter-picks have been supported by the council’s waste team since April this year.”
Wick does not feature on the list of facilities. The lack of functioning public toilets in the town has been a cause for concern this year, with community council chairperson Joanna Coghill calling it unacceptable for a place of Wick's size.
The Whitechapel Road conveniences were closed early in 2020 after being targeted in a series of acts of vandalism.
In August it was reported that a team from Highland Council was looking at the options for both the Whitechapel Road and Camps toilets and that this work had moved on to the design stage.
A Highland Council spokesperson said: “The facilities in Wick need far greater resources than the council currently has and were available in the Visitor Management Plan funding this year – £60,000 for the whole of Highland.
"There is no core repairs budget and no capital funding agreed for public conveniences this year and the operating revenue budget was cut by 25 per cent three years ago. Surveys are being commissioned on the Wick public conveniences including costings to see how best to proceed. Investment decisions will be made at council for this year and next year’s budget.”
