SEVEN local councils are in a race against time with only two weeks to go before West Somerset Council no longer runs the area’s public toilets.

They have to complete their takeover plans and keep the toilets open when the district council steps down on April 1.

Just a year since district councillors voted to close West Somerset’s toilets if alternative operators could not be found, it is hoped that nearly all the facilities will be up and running under new ownership on deadline day.

“The response from local councils has been fantastic,” said Cllr Mandy Chilcott, district council deputy leader.

“You can’t under-estimate what a huge ask this was for the smaller authorities and the result has been far more than I had hoped for.

“There are some problems to iron out but I have every confidence that the takeover will result in a smooth transition and provide public toilets of a standard everyone expects.”

But this week some teething problems remained in the run-up to the take-over.

For instance, Watchet could be without disabled public toilets for at least a week when the district council closes the existing toilets before alternative facilities are ready.

And Williton Parish Council was still in negotiation with the district authority over taking on the Killick Way unisex toilet. According to chairman Keith Richards, a decision was not expected to be reached until a full parish council meeting on April 8 – a week after the toilet is due to close.

“We are hopeful of resolving the situation and moving forward but there is still some way to go and any recommendation must be approved by our councillors,” Cllr Richards said.

A Free Press round-up of the progress of toilet take-overs found that local councils were facing the change in buoyant mood. Full details in today’s Free Press (March 17).