‘Gross’ Dad-of-three blasts graffitied, ‘smelly’ toilets at heart of popular park
APUBLIC toilet block in Cheltenham has been branded “filthy” and “disgusting” by a resident whose children have to use the facility regularly.
The father-of-three said the men’s conveniences in Montpellier Gardens smelled awful, were in a bad state of repair and had crude graffiti written over them.
Ben Visor said he and his partner visit the park at least once a week after school so his daughter and two sons can play in the children’s playground, as well as wandering around the festivals when they are in town.
“We usually go there straight after school by which time my kids always need a wee, so we have no choice but to use them, but they always seem to be so gross,” said Ben, 32, a greengrocer.
“In the men’s there are broken tiles under the urinals, a horrible smell and disgusting writing over the inside of the cubicles. The other day my daughter started reading something that had been written on the inside of the door which just wasn’t suitable for her to see.”
Ben said often when they visited the toilets at around 3.30pm they had been already locked for the day, which he said was “crazy”.
“That’s exactly when people bring their children after school, so I can’t understand why they would be closed. We went down to the ones behind the Town Hall but they were also locked.
“There is so much stuff going on in Cheltenham that brings in visitors like the festivals and Montpellier is the heart of all that, so I don’t understand why they aren’t spending money to improve the facilities.”
When Gloucestershire Live visited the toilet block, they found graffiti in the men’s area, peeling paintwork and a very strong smell of urine. The women’s side was better, but three of the six cubicles were “out of order”.
A Cheltenham Borough Council spokesperson said each toilet was inspected and cleaned four times a day and they did their best to ensure the facilities were clean and available for use.
“We’re very sorry to hear this and would like to assure residents that we are working on refurbishment considerations for this facility,” they said.
“Unfortunately, they do occasionally get vandalised or misused. When this happens, toilets may not be as clean as usual for a short time or may be closed to the public whilst essential repairs are carried out. Our contractor is visiting first thing today [last Friday] to carry out any necessary repairs to the women’s facilities and they will be reopened shortly after his visit.
“The men’s facilities have been recently redecorated and the graffiti in the women’s facilities will be removed this week or early next week. Our public toilets are now on summer opening times (7.30am to 7pm) unless maintenance work is being carried out.”
The council requests that any faults, damage, vandalism or problems with cleanliness are reported online at www.cheltenham.gov.uk/report-it or by phoning 01242 262626.
We’re very sorry to hear this and would like to assure residents that we are working on refurbishment considerations for this facility
Cheltenham Borough Council