About this project

We’ve sought community feedback on our draft Public Toilet Strategy, which outlines our four-year plan for new, upgraded and replacement public toilets, and the criteria for where we’ll build more Changing Places.

What we asked

The consultation was open between 26 February and 2 April 2024, we asked our community to provide feedback via an online survey or written submission, about how we can approach the management and improvement of public toilets in Bayside.

A total of 588 submissions were received during the engagement and the Strategy itself was downloaded 131 times. More than 1,700 respondents visited the project webpage with 578 contributions made, alongside 1 question, 2 email submissions to a Councillor, and 7 email submissions to Council.

We’ve summarised feedback below, or you can read the complete report.

We primarily sought feedback on our vision for the Strategy, to make public toilets more accessible, inclusive, and safer. This included seven underlying objectives to achieve that vision:

1. Ensure new public toilets meet a high standard of accessibility, beyond minimum compliance levels.
2. Carry out minor works and maintenance to improve existing facilities’ accessibility
3. Replace older facilities with modern facilities which are available to all users
4. Install gender-neutral signage for public toilet facilities
5. Use data counters to improve proactive cleaning schedule
6. Install contact signs to immediately report faults, vandalism, or mess
7. Increase funding to renew and upgrade toilet components and improve accessibility

Bayside’s Disability Access and Inclusion Advisory Committee (DAIAC) supported most Changing Place criteria except the proposed 2km buffer. Officers have proposed reducing the buffer from 2km to 1.5km.

Respondents were also asked whether they would prefer a new foreshore Changing Place at Ricketts Point or Half Moon Bay. DAIAC preferred Ricketts Point as the best location for a Changing Place.

The feedback we received demonstrated that there is strong community support for a new toilet in Elsternwick Park however, the proposed location would be better suited closer to Oval 4 for sports and recreation users to utilise, as well as providing an increased buffer from residential properties.

Community members who supported the need for new toilets at Elsternwick Park expressed concerns about the proposed location of the toilet encouraging park users to congregate near residential property fences. To find out more detailed feedback on the toilet proposed for Elsternwick Park, you can read the separate community engagement report.

We received close to 600 contributions on the Public Toilet Strategy 2024 - 2028, more than double the number of contributions as the previous Public Toilet Strategy 2019 - 2023. This was likely driven by a competition incentive to win a year’s supply of toilet paper.

Key stakeholders, Bayside’s Disability Access and Inclusion Advisory Committee (DAIAC) and the Bayside Healthy Ageing Reference Group (BHARG) were highly involved in the process and provided significant input into the accessibility, inclusion and safety which make up the Strategy Vision.

Next steps

We will consider this report on community and stakeholder feedback and adopting a proposed Public Toilet Strategy at the meeting on 21 May 2024.

Community feedback will be used to refine the strategy and its approach to planning of new facilities and improving older facilities.

• Read the agenda
• Ask a question
• Submit a written statement (request to be heard)
• Watch the meeting live or view a recording

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