'I was attacked by a platinum award toilet in Skegness'

Finding out why toilets in Skegness are being acknowledged as among the best in the country was something definitely worth investigating.

The toilet block coming out top in the resort is the one in the car park at the end of Tower Esplanade.

Refurbished last year as part of the £500,000 improvement programme, it now features new vanity units, basins, taps and cubicle doors, decoration and lighting works.

It costs 20p to enter and on a quiet day in January you'd expect it to be sparkling clean.

What I didn't expect was to be 'attacked by a toilet' when the automatic flush sensor reacted while reaching for toilet paper.

It was certainly something to laugh about to the attendant - after all I'd hate him to think the water on the floor was anything else.

He told me keeping them clean was very challenging in the summer. "It's not so bad at this time of the year but in the summer they are used all the time and you really have to work hard to keep them clean," he said.

Thirteen public toilets in East Lindsey have received national recognition at the Loo of the Year Awards, ranking them amongst some of the best in the country.

They were subject to unannounced inspections with judges grading the toilets Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond based on the quality of the facilities and hygiene standards.

Awards were given as follows:

SKEGNESS:

· Tower Esplanade (Platinum)

· Tower Gardens (Gold)

· Briar Way (Gold)

· North Parade (Gold)

· Lumley Square (Gold)

MABLETHORPE:

· Central Promenade (Gold)

· Seacroft Road (Gold)

· Dunes Gardens (Gold)

· Queen’s Park (Gold)

SUTTON ON SEA:

· York Road (Gold)

· Roman Bank Sandilands (Gold)

LOUTH

· Eastgate (Platinum)

· Bus Station (Platinum)

The facility at the Bus Station, Louth, received an additional National award in the Transport category.

The success comes hot on the heels of the announcement in October that the same 13 toilets also won star ratings from the British Toilet Association for the quality of the facilities.

Portfolio Holder for Operational Services at the District Council, Councillor Martin Foster, said: “This is further excellent news in regard to public toilet provision in East Lindsey. Local people and visitors expect access to clean, good quality public toilets, and we’ve been working with Danfo to drive up standards and this success has been achieved in a relatively shortly period of time. We would like to thank the Team at Danfo working in the local area – many of whom were previously employed by the Council – for their hard work and commitment.”

Andrew Mcilduff, Director of Operations at Danfo UK Ltd said: “To receive such amazing accolades so early in our working relationship with East Lindsey District Council is testament to the fantastic work carried out by our Cleaning and Maintenance staff who have been instrumental in achieving these prestigious awards. Danfo U.K. Ltd are already looking at further initiatives to ensure that we achieve continuous improvements to the Public Conveniences in East Lindsey and we are very proud to have received these awards.”