Campaign group gathers to create first Coventry and Warwickshire Loo Alliance!
No-one should have to plan their entire day around whether they’ll be able to find a toilet. Yet thousands of people in Coventry and Warwickshire do it every time they step out of the front door.
A lack of clean, accessible toilets isn’t a minor inconvenience; it’s isolating people, causing medical distress and leaving people feeling unsafe. Right now, toilet provision is fragmented and often treated as an afterthought.
So this Wednesday (22 July), Coventry’s Need The Loo campaign group — supported by community organisers from Grapevine’s Connecting for Good movement — hosts its first open gathering with the objective of creating a local Loo Alliance alongside local people.
Date and time: Wednesday 22 July from 4pm – 6pm
Location: The Village Hotel and Leisure Club, Dolomite Ave, Coventry CV4 9GZ
Click this link to complete a quick RSVP form
Inspired by similar groups such as the successful London Loo Alliance, tomorrow’s event is about building collective power and forming a joined-up approach to a city-wide issue.
Grapevine community organiser Melissa Smith, who works closely with Need The Loo, said: “Together we hope to find creative solutions, hold decision-makers to account, lobby the government to give our region a fair share of infrastructure funding and ensure developers can’t ignore basic human needs.
“This will be a space to listen, network and imagine based on our recent listening campaign which highlighted how widespread this issue really is.”
The local listening campaign heard from people across every walk of life who shared that:
- Women, runners and dog walkers are using bushes and feeling exposed and vulnerable
- Disabled residents, parents with young children and carers are cutting day trips short
- Older people and those living with conditions like dementia or Alzheimer’s, along with the family members caring for them, face the stress and heartbreak of accidents because the nearest toilet is too far away
- People are dehydrating themselves or avoiding places entirely because of the anxiety of trying to find a toilet
- Night workers, delivery drivers and rough sleepers are left without facilities when the city shuts until morning
- Green groups, park volunteers and community gardeners who want people to enjoy the outdoors say volunteers and families have to pack up and go home early because there isn’t a toilet nearby
- Creative groups, artists and event organisers offering pop-ups and festivals in streets and green spaces say there is often a lack of public toilet facilities for visitors and performers to use.
Need The Loo campaigners feel it’s time to stop fighting these battles alone.
They’re looking for local business owners, managers, public health workers, community campaigners, urban planners, architects, developers, park volunteers, gardeners, event creators and anyone navigating these issues or caring for family to come to tomorrow’s gathering to help get the Loo Alliance off the ground.
Here’s the good news: we aren’t starting from scratch, and change can happen when you’re organised!
- Coventry City Council has rolled out more Changing Places toilets across Coventry to support people with complex needs
- Need The Loo successfully lobbied for new physical signage installed across wayfinder signs and city centre bins to tell people where the nearest toilet is and how long it takes to get there
- Need The Loo have partnered with Age UK, Colostomy UK and Prostate UK to fight for hidden health needs including sanitary bins in men’s toilets and stoma friendly toilets
- Need The Loo helped secure major funding for Central Methodist Hall. They used the group’s listening data and evidence to win a funding bid to upgrade their facilities
- Celebrating World Toilet Day last November in Coventry city centre.
Best of all, more local people are actively talking about a subject that used to be a complete taboo. The momentum is real, but we need to move from one-off wins to long-term systemic change.
Come along to share your ideas and let’s figure out what we can achieve together.
Date and time: Wednesday 22 July from 4pm – 6pm
Location: The Village Hotel and Leisure Club, Dolomite Ave, Coventry CV4 9GZ
Click this link to complete a quick RSVP form
Need The Loo needs your voice, your lived experience, your knowledge and skills at the table. Whether you have professional expertise, run a local business, manage a community venue, bring campaign expertise or simply believe everyone deserves access to a toilet when they need one — Need The Loo wants your input.
Can’t make the meeting but still want to help? Please spend two minutes filling out the quick Green Spaces toilet survey. Click this link to open the survey in a new window.
Read local woman Joanna’s Need The Loo story by following this link to the Connecting for Good website.