Laois County Council have rejected a notice of motion to install public toilet facilities at a Durrow playground.

The Council's Recreation Department have said that the installation of toilet facilities falls to a local community group to 'identify the need and fund, secure and maintain."

Independent Cllr Ollie Clooney tabled this motion, stressing that these facilities are needed.

"There is a gym there that has a new lease, the new person has said that they aren't insured to allow people to use the toilet facilities," Cllr Clooney said.

"In the summer time, people are spending more time there with the children off school."

"Laois County Council's lease at the Old Boys School in Durrow is for a playground only," the Council replied.

"Toilet facilities are generally not provided by Laois County Council at playgrounds. The local community group, who manage the playground in partnership with Laois County Council, often organise local arrangements to use adjacent community facilities for playground users," the Council continued.

"In circumstances where no alternative toilet facilities are available it is a matter for the local community group to identify the need and fund, secure and maintain toilet facilities- as in the case of Coolrain Playground, where the local community group Coolrain Tidy Towns secured CLÁR funding for a dry toilet facility and maintain this as an annex to the playground," the Council finished.

Cllr Clooney responded that this response was long, and was 'not good news'.

"There is no question that toilet facilities are needed in the playground," Cllr Clooney said.

"The bathroom in the chapel is always locked up. I don't know what to say, other than it's needed. If there is no funding available, then we have to accept that. Hopefully we can come up with a plan to find some way around this, toilets are badly needed here," Cllr Clooney said.

Cllr John King seconded this motion tabled by Cllr Clooney, expressing that Rathdowney playground is facing a similar issue.

The Rathdowney Cllr questioned whether temporary portable toilets could be placed in playgrounds during the summer months. 

"The Rathdowney playground could benefit from a portable toilet. At night time toilets can become places to avoid, because different activities may be going on. It's a tricky situation," Cllr King said.

Cllr James Kelly asked for clarification on what exactly a 'dry toilet facility' is, and stated that in terms of portable toilets, he would prefer a fixed toilet attached to mains. 

Senior Engineer with the Council, and the Council's Director of Services, both admitted that they were unsure of what a dry toilet facility was. 

Director of Services Angela McEvoy explained that the Council do not provide toilet facilities, as they do not have the funding to support their maintenance, and suggested that a town team investigate the needs and funding of toilet facilities.

This motion was tabled at a June sitting of Laois County Council's Borris-in-Ossory / Mountmellick Municipal District.

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