Businesses in Wandsworth are being invited to open up their private facilities for public convenience in return for a Council payment of £600 a year.
Wandsworth want to recruit 100 toilets which would be clearly advertised and annually inspected, to replace some underused "Automatic Public Conveniences" (APCs) and complement other Council provision across the borough.
We imagine, however, that only businesses that usually provide toilets for their customers would bother signing up to go public for £600. It seems a pretty safe bet that a lot more cleaning, inspection and equipment is involved in free for all access to your littlest room with the added headache of more people trooping in and out of your cafe or bar just for the WC, however much Wandsworth are trying to sell the commercial benefits of wider wee-ing opportunities for all.
We think this is a good idea, though. Mainly because those automatic lavs scare us. There's no discreet way to enter one and they carry the ever-present threat of malfunctioning at a crucial moment and exposing you and yours to all and sundry on the local high street. Not a pretty sight.
Image courtesy of Danny McL's Flickrstream.
