Torfaen Local Toilets Strategy: Torfaen Toilets Assessment of Need 2018
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TORFAEN LOCAL TOILETS STRATEGY: TORFAEN TOILETS ASSESSMENT OF NEED 2018 Contents Page 2: Introduction Page 3: General Information about Torfaen Page 4: Health Page 5: Demographic Projections Page 6: Poverty Page 6: Commuting Page 8: Tourism and Events Page 11: Engagement Local Toilet Survey, p.11 Baby Changing Survey, p.24 Page 28: Current Provision TCBC owned and run public toilets, p.28 TCBC buildings that open their toilets to the public, p.28 Community Councils, p.29 Other public sector buildings that open their toilets to the public, p.29 Third sector premises that open their toilets to the public, p.29 Cwmbran Centre toilet facilities, p.29 Service stations with toilet facilities, p.30 Supermarkets with toilet facilities, p.30 Changing Places national scheme, p.30 Page 31: Radar Key availability Page 31: Appendices Page 31: Sources 1 Introduction This assessment has been undertaken in response to the Public Health (Wales) Act 2017, Part 8, which requires local authorities to undertake an assessment of need in relation to public toilets and, to use this assessment of need to inform a Local Toilet Strategy. Access to toilets supports people to go out and about and to feel confident that, should they need to, they can safely use a toilet. This is the case for people of all ages, with or without a health condition. For those people who have more frequent or urgent need of a toilet, they often plan their trip away from home around toilet availability or they do not go out at all. This can lead to social isolation and loneliness and affects people of all ages. The Bladder and Bowel Foundation claim that around 14 million people in the UK have a bladder control problem (approximately 1 in 5 people) and around 6.5 million suffer with a bowel control problem that is bothersome (approximately 1 in 10 people)1. Torfaen has a population of around 92,3002. Extrapolating the figures above would suggest that approximately 18,460 people in Torfaen have a bladder control problem and 9,230 people in Torfaen suffer with a bowel control problem that is bothersome. Clearly, the availability of toilets has a significant impact on the ability of many people to go about their daily routines, potentially affecting social inclusion, family lives, physical activity levels and people’s ability to travel to work. The purpose of this document is to assess these needs in the context of existing toilet provision within Torfaen. As well as looking at Torfaen as a whole, we have looked at our three main settlements – Blaenavon (population: 6,171), Pontypool (37,220) and Cwmbran (48,661)3 – and the communities that are within them. We have focused on the strengths and assets of our communities and the basic infrastructure – of which toilets are an important part - that allows people to go about their everyday lives. There is no statutory requirement for local authorities to provide public toilets and in many regions of the UK, councils have closed some or all toilet facilities or introduced charges to access them. Torfaen County Borough Council (CBC) maintains a number of free to access traditional toilet blocks and allows access to toilets within many of our buildings. There are currently (October 2018) no toilets in the borough that require people to pay to access them. In development of the Local Toilet Strategy, including this Assessment of Need, we have considered the availability of toilets within buildings such as shops, cafes, restaurants, public houses and garages, a good number of which provide facilities that can be somewhere to dash to when desperate for the loo. As businesses provide these toilets primarily, and sometimes exclusively, for customer use, our 2 assessment also looked at whether residents feel comfortable using the toilets of businesses without buying something and whether they would feel more comfortable if businesses displayed signage to indicate that their toilets are available to people not buying a product or service. General information about Torfaen Torfaen has an area of 126km2 and is the 3rd smallest borough in Wales. It has three main urban areas of Cwmbran, Pontypool and Blaenavon with smaller communities linking these towns along the valley. Torfaen also includes open countryside ranging from upland areas at the head of the valley around Blaenavon (designated as a World Heritage site) and sides of the valley, woodland, nature reserves, canal and river sides, open parks and farmland. Torfaen CBC works with a range of organisations to manage the biodiversity and natural resources in and around the borough as well as the built environment, local roads and major highways. Torfaen’s population is currently made up of 28,010 children and young people (aged 0 to 25); 45,330 adults (aged 26 to 64); and 18,460 older people (aged 65 plus)4. Population forecasts tell us that over the next 20 to 30 years, the number of people aged 0 to 64 will reduce and the number of older people will increase (changing birth rates and increasing life expectancy), although the shift in these numbers could vary dependent upon housebuilding, attracting people to live in the area, keeping our young people living locally and being a vibrant economic community. The Torfaen Assessment of Well-being (2017) carried out by Torfaen Public Services Board under the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 and the Gwent Population Needs Assessment (2017) carried out by the Gwent Regional Partnership Board under the Social Services & Wellbeing (Wales) Act 2014, provide a wealth of information on population health, social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being across Torfaen. Using this information along with that of our public engagement on local toilets undertaken during the summer / early autumn of 2018, we have been able to build a picture of need across Torfaen. Further work in relation to developing a local toilet strategy for Torfaen has included mapping of current toilet provision open to the public, identifying gaps in provision and wide engagement with people from across our communities. 3 Health Torfaen has a varying picture of health, from communities in deprivation with low levels of good health and low levels of healthy life expectancy (where a person will have a short period of good health, followed by a long period of poor health before dying), to people with high levels of good health and high levels of healthy life expectancy (where a person will have a long period of good health, followed by a short period / no period of poor health before dying in older age). According to the Welsh Health Survey (2014/15) over half of the Torfaen adult population report being treated for a mental or physical chronic illness5. Ill-health and chronic conditions such as cancers, heart conditions, strokes, diabetes, muscular-skeletal conditions, being obese or overweight and having poor mental health, can all cause difficulties for people on a daily basis. Whilst health and social care services work to treat and support those people diagnosed, other public services work together to provide a range of support groups and community based services and to promote healthy behaviours and lifestyles. Despite the benefits of being active, just under a third (30.8%) of Torfaen residents report meeting the physical activity guidelines (WHS 2014/15) for exercise for health [5]. The proportion of people getting enough physical activity to benefit their health in Torfaen and Wales over the last decade has remained stubbornly flat. Over a third of the population of Torfaen report being physically inactive; this is higher than the Welsh average. Circulatory diseases are one of the leading causes of death in Torfaen and physical inactivity is known to be a contributing factor. Two out of every three adults are overweight or obese (62%, WHS 2014/15), higher than Wales (59%) [5]. GP disease registers show nearly 6,000 people resident in Torfaen are diagnosed with diabetes6. Over a quarter of reception year (4-5 years) children in Torfaen are already overweight or obese (28.6%) which is above the Wales average of 26.2%7. Obesity rates are expected to rise further in future generations, creating a significant problem for health and well-being and the sustainability of public services in the future. The National Association for Colitis and Crohn’s Disease (NACC) is a national charity offering support to people who have Colitis or Crohn’s Disease - diseases that can strike at any age. Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s Disease, known collectively as Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), affects approximately 1 in 400 people living in the UK8. The sudden and uncontrollable need to use a toilet is a genuine and recognised symptom of IBD. Having an ‘accident’ in public is every patient’s worst fear and can have a devastating effect on their ability to undertake everyday activities such as going to work, shopping or socialising. Our mental well-being must be seen as a resource for life, influencing how we think and feel about ourselves and others, how we interpret events and consequently how we behave and function in day to day life. 4 The average Mental Component Summary scores (WHS, 2014/15) for Torfaen is 48.7, being slightly lower than Wales (49.4) meaning Torfaen has slightly lower mental well-being on average than Wales as a whole5. Our Healthy Future Indicators (PHWO, 2015) show that nearly a third (31%) of Torfaen residents report having a common mental health issue9. Over the past ten years, studies into the effects of loneliness and social isolation on people’s health have shown that it can be a major factor in diminishing the health and well-being of people as they age, associated with poor mental health and with conditions such as cardiovascular disease, hypertension and dementia.