A PETITION has been created online to keep Trebarwith’s public toilets open.

Cornwall Council shocked locals last week by closing down the toilets, leaving business owners in the village reeling and the public dismayed.

Conservative Cornwall Councillor for Tintagel, Barry Jordan, has organised a meeting with Cornwall Council today (9am) where he’ll lobby to get the toilets re-opened.

In a statement, Mr Jordan said: “Visitor numbers to Trebarwith during the summer get to a very high level, Cornwall Council have a car park there which raises approximately £100,000 a year, there is another car park which is privately owned which even at this time of the year is quite busy.

“To have a very busy cove with a cafe, shops and the surf club without the basic amenity will struggle to survive.”

Cllr Jordan said Cornwall Council had decided to close toilets ‘unless parish and town councils took them over’, but added: “Trebarwith is a special case, the building that houses the toilets has other users that have long leases, Tintagel Parish Council tried to run them but ran into difficulties so when the short lease ran out they handed them back to Cornwall Council who decided to close them, and secure them.

“I have spoken to people in Trebarwith who have told Cornwall Council that they will look after them, will open and close them, will clean them during the day, several times a day if necessary the money raised by the 20p entry fee would be used to buy the necessities and any repairs that are needed but at the moment Cornwall Council have turned a deaf ear.

“I have met with a number of people who have been very busy trying to get these toilets open for the Bank Holiday weekend to start with but have not received any response for Cornwall Council, Cheryl gave me a petition signed by over 1000 people from as far Australia, Canada, Germany, France and the Netherlands, people who have visited Trebarwith and will continue to do so.

“Public toilets are extremely important in areas like Trebarwith, human waste can carry disease, we don’t want to return to the times when our villages are used as public toilets, they were put there for a reason, public health, public safety must be of paramount importance to all of us and Cornwall Council is denying the people of Trebarwith and its visitors of a basic human right.”

In response, Cornwall Council issued a statement saying: “Since the local parish council surrendered the lease on the Trebarwith Strand toilets last autumn, we’ve been trying to find an alternative solution that would enable the toilets to remain open. Unfortunately we have not been able to achieve this as yet, but we are continuing to investigate all possible options.

“We do appreciate the importance of public toilets and sustainable solutions have been found for the majority of the 251 public toilets previously run by Cornwall Council.

“As no permanent solution has been found for Trebarwith Strand, the toilets are closed. Following reports that the toilets were still being accessed while officially closed, we have now secured the site until a solution is found.

“Arrangements have been made for the RNLI lifeguards to continue to have access to the toilets.”

The petition was started by local woman Cheryl Donald, who has issued a plea to Cornwall Council, saying: “It was a sad day when I got home to discover that Cormac had been to Trebarwith Strand not to clean the public toilets but to close them down. I have been using the beach all my life and the toilets have always been there serving the local community and the thousands of visitors that use the area for both recreation and business.

“Trebarwith Strand has a cafe, beach shops and a pub owned by St Austell brewery. Whilst all of these establishments will I’m sure oblige where they can when faced with pleading faces of parents with children, they shouldn’t have to and I’m certain their charity can only be taken so far when visitor numbers during peak times can be in their hundreds. It is also disrespectful to folk whose personal beliefs or values prevent them from entering a public house.

“So where do you expect people to go when these businesses say ‘no’ which they are well within their rights to do? The path up to the Port William is steep and uneven and unsuitable to traverse if you a little unsteady on your feet. It’s also unsuitable for younger children due to the vehicles using the path. The toilet block is in good condition so I must assume that the reason for closure must be purely as part of the council’s budget cuts. The public car park for Trebarwith is run and maintained by Cornwall Council and which the council must make a considerable amount of money from. Surely your revenue from this will decrease if visitor numbers decrease due to no facilities? You know how big the car park is, you know how many people visit this area. The nearest public block is in Tintagel village, three miles away. Not much use if you are having a family day at the beach. We urge you to reconsider your decision and re-open these essential facilities.”