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The council does not have a statutory duty to provide Public Conveniences. Nevertheless, it has always done so because the public regard them as an important local amenity, especially in areas that attract large numbers of tourists. Because the service is non-statutory, in Denbighshire’s early years (post 1996) the service attracted a disproportionate level of budgetary cuts. It became a 'run-down' service that did not have a sufficient budget to improve itself.

Over recent years the Council has been able to reverse the previous decline in service levels, by providing increased staffing levels at its sites. However, the only way that the Council can afford to do this is by making a modest charge for the use of (some of) its facilities. There are currently no charges for the use of disabled facilities.

We have found that there is widespread public acceptance of charging, providing there is a corresponding improvement in service levels. All of the income is fed back into the service and this has enabled us to move into an 'upward spiral' of service provision.

The council undertakes a simple cost/benefit analysis when determining what type of provision is appropriate. This balances the numbers of visitors, together with the cost of collecting the cash, against the benefits. The benefits include: higher standards of cleanliness, higher public satisfaction levels and reduction in anti-social behaviour and vandalism.