THE condition of public toilets in Portishead is putting people off visiting the town.

Senior citizen Ruth Hillberg, who has visited Portishead regularly for many years, says she will not be returning again because of the disgraceful public toilet situation.

There are only two public conveniences in the town and both are in a state of disrepair. Leaking roofs, loose tiles and no hot water are just some of the issues users have raised.

Mrs Hillberg called the conveniences ‘vile’ and ‘unacceptable’ but says a visit to the Lake Grounds on March 14 was the final straw.

Mrs Hillberg made her way to the toilets next to the Lakeside Café and found them closed. Staff in the café told her they could not offer any facilities or provide any information as to why the toilets were closed.

She said: “The toilets in Portishead let the whole town down. There was nowhere close by to turn to and I had to head off to the town centre in search of a loo.

“Others who didn’t have transport were nearly in tears when they discovered there were no toilet facilities available close to the seafront tourist attraction.”

A North Somerset Council spokesman said: “The toilets were closed for a short period of time to clear a blockage and were re-opened as soon as possible.”

The authority has set no budget aside for public conveniences from April 1 and is keen for town councils to take on responsibility for them.

Portishead Town Council has refused to allocate funds for this until more information is provided and, given the short timescale, there is a real danger the toilets in Wyndham Way will close on April 1.

The Lake Grounds toilets, however, are part of a concession the authority is working on for the area.

A North Somerset Council spokesman said: “The toilets at the Lake Grounds will remain open as we want to include them in the toilet concession we are working on.

“We will continue to discuss with Portishead Town Council about how the toilets in Wyndham Way can be kept open, but if we can’t reach an agreement they could close.”