An opinion poll into public attitudes to church buildings

A recent poll shows that the public welcomed Government funding for church heritage and revealed what would get them to return to visiting churches, chapels and meeting houses

60 % of British adults back the Government providing financial support for churches, chapels and meeting houses in order to protect their heritage and history for future generations, according to the findings of a new opinion poll, commissioned by the National Churches Trust. The overwhelming majority of British adults (84%) think that the UK’s churches, chapels and meeting houses are an important part of the UK’s heritage and history, according to the findings of the ComRes poll, which interviewed 2,038 GB adults online between the 16th and 17th December 2015.

A further 83% of British adults think that the UK’s churches and chapels and meeting houses play an important role for society. When people were asked what would most encourage them to visit churches, the top five responses were:

• A friendly welcome

• The provision of toilets

• A Café or refreshment area,
• Comfortable seating
• Access to useful visitor information

The poll found that 57% of British adults said that they had visited a church in the past year for religious services, non-religious activities or as a visitor or tourist.

 A few of the Key findings include:

• More than four in five Britons (84%) agree that the UK’s churches, chapels and meeting houses are an important part of the UK’s heritage and history.
• The majority of British adults (83%) agree that churches, chapels and meeting houses are important for society as they provide a space in which community activities can take place, as well as worship. But what would encourage more of them to visit a one of these places

• 34% said the provision of toilets

• 32% said that a Café or refreshment area
• 29% said that comfortable seating and
• 28% said that access to useful visitor information would encourage them to visit
• Younger adults (those aged 18-34) say that Wi-Fi would encourage them to visit
• 46% of British adults agreed that it is difficult to find useful visitor information, such
  as directions, opening hours and details of things to see and do.

Claire Walker, Chief Executive of the National Churches Trust said:

“This poll shows that there is overwhelming public support for church buildings, despite the decline in the numbers of people in Britain identifying themselves as Christian in recent years.” The British public thinks that churches, chapels and meeting houses are an important part of the UK’s heritage and history and that they are also important for society as they provide a space in which community activities can take place, as well as worship. Looking to the future, our poll shows how even more people could be encouraged to visit churches. That includes making sure that visitors receive a friendly welcome and providing better facilities such as toilets, a Café or refreshment area and Wi-Fi was seen as particularly important by young adults. “

“However, the huge support for churches demonstrated by this poll will, I hope, encourage local communities and church authorities to keep their buildings open & in good repair and with the right facilities to allow greater community use for many years to come.”

Churches, chapels and meeting houses can continue to play a vital role in the life and well-being of the nation!

Wi-Fi, ATMs and turbo-flush toilets:

China reveals its latest high-tech restrooms which could soon become commonplace

By Cheyenne MacDonald and Tracy You for Mail-on-Line

China is working hard to overhaul its public sanitation system, and it’s updating toilets with Wi-Fi, television screens, and even ATM machines. People don’t usually like to linger in public restrooms; in China, with the squat toilets, shortage of toilet paper, and sometimes unsanitary conditions, the bathroom experience can be daunting. Now, high-tech restrooms could turn public toilet-use into a more enjoyable situation. High-tech toilet developments could give Chinese bathrooms a new reputation. China is working hard to overhaul its public sanitation system, and it’s updating toilets with Wi-Fi, television screens, and even ATM machines. According to The New York Times, China will be renovating or constructing 57,000 public bathrooms, and some of them will be equipped with high-tech gadgets. In Fangshan, a new public facility has turbo-flushing powers in the toilets, along with wireless internet and TV screens in the stalls. The windows are lined with aloe vera plants, and a cello soundtrack plays in the background. The first new-generation bathroom opened to the public in November, in front of the government offices of the Fangshan District in south-west Beijing.It will even conserve water, recycling sink water to flush toilets. The event was timed to celebrate the ‘World’s Toilet Day,’ which falls on the same day, and is a part of the first ‘China Toilet Revolution Propaganda Day. For many years, China has suffered from sanitary issues in its public bathrooms. In poorer communities, 14 million people must defecate in the open. ‘Change is certainly needed,’ Lu Suisheng told NYT. ‘In some Chinese toilets, people need to step on bricks to avoid stepping on dirty areas. How can you use toilets like that?’

According to the noticeboard displayed outside of the building, the spacious beige-tiled restroom has 11 different sections, including male toilets, female toilets, unisex toilets, accessible toilets, baby-changing facilities, an e-commerce area and an ATM room. The entire area has available Wi-Fi and there are vending machines selling different type of soft drinks. Each toilet or urinal is equipped with a flat-screen TV set nearby for entertaining the user. In Fangshan, a new public facility named ‘The Fifth Space,’ has turbo-flushing powers in the toilets, along with wireless internet and TV screens in the stalls. The windows are lined with aloe vera plants, and a cello soundtrack plays in the background.

The efforts to clean up the public restroom are received well by many, but some residents argue that the technological additions are a waste of money that could be put to better use elsewhere. Others argue that these new gadgets in the restrooms will lead people to spend unnecessary time on the toilet and force others to wait.
Toilet users can also buy drinks from the vending machines (left) and pay their utility bills using a multi-purpose phone. The efforts to clean up the public restroom are received well by many.

Charging stations have been installed outside the building so that customers can leave their electric bikes to be powered while answering the call of nature.  It seems designers hope the new facility will be a meeting point for residents away from home and work. A spokesman from Beijing Environmental Sanitation Engineering Group told the People’s Daily Online that they hope the new public restroom will become ‘the fifth space’ besides the family space, work space, leisure space and cyber space. Hence, the sign of the restroom will be changed from ‘WC’, a traditional sign for public toilets in China, to the number ‘5.’

And even all the functions above are not enough in Beijing’s ambition toilet revolution. The spokesman said: ‘We will learn Japan’s experience to provide basic physical examination in the restrooms, such as blood pressure, heart rate and urinalysis.’  More of these ‘The Fifth Space’ toilets are due to open on the outskirts of Beijing soon – in Fangshan, Tongzhou, Shunyi and Pingu districts – as well as other Chinese cities, including Guiyang, Haikou, Kunming and Zhangjiakou.

THE PUBLIC SANITATION PROBLEM

• The new bathrooms are cleaner, but some argue they are a waste of money

China will be renovating or constructing 57,000 public bathrooms, and some of them will be equipped with high-tech gadgets. Toilets in China, often squat toilets or concrete pits, have remained unchanged for generations. Between 1990 and 2010, China updated facilities for 593 million people, but the changes did not extend to everyone. For many years, China has suffered from sanitary issues in its public bathrooms. In poorer communities, 14 million people must defecate in the open. Many people are now arguing that unnecessary additions, like TVs, are a waste of money that could be used instead to update the facilities in poor areas.

Public Health (Wales) Bill
Expected to be laid before the Assembly again in September 2016

 Carwyn Jones has been re-elected as Welsh First Minister

Carwyn Jones has been confirmed back into the role as the First Minister of Wales. In a speech to the Assembly, Mr Jones set out priorities for his minority administration government, saying he will concentrate primarily on issues with cross-party support, following agreements with Plaid Cymru.

He said:  We will not bring forward any new legislation in the first 100 days, giving political groups in the Assembly some time to establish a new way of doing law-making in Wales. This will allow all parties to jointly develop a scrutiny and committee procedure that is better suited to this institution’s Parliamentary responsibilities.

Once the Assembly is in a position to better scrutinise legislation we will look to bring forward a new Public Health (Wales) Bill, which was proposed by the previous Minister for Health.

This Bill is asking for all Local Authorities in Wales to develop a strategy for the provision of public toilets across all electoral areas. Councils must take into consideration the continuing needs of a wide range of  user groups in addition to many thousands of visitors and tourist being encouraged to visit Wales and enjoy the experience. The BTA has been actively working with councils and government departments to support this legislation coming into existence.

Organisers announce new regional event in Manchester

The British Cleaning Council and Quartz Business Media, joint organisers of the UK’s largest dedicated cleaning and hygiene exhibition – The Cleaning Show – have announced a new event following the hugely successful event at London ExCeL earlier this year.

The new Manchester Cleaning Show will be held 6-7 April 2016 at Event City and is positioned deliberately to sit in the middle of the Cleaning Show biennial cycle, so that manufacturers, distributors and service suppliers to the industry can easily participate in both events. Unlike the Cleaning Show in London, the expectation is that the audience will be more regional and smaller in scale; however the event will be content rich and full of opportunities to network and do business.

Further news of a conference will be announced soon
For further information please contact:
Vanessa Van Santen – Smith, Sales Manager
T: +44 (0)1737 855 041, F: +44 (0)1737 855 034
E: vanessavss@quartzltd.com

www.cleaningshow.co.uk/manchester

SPECIAL NOTE
The BTA Annual General Meeting will take place on
Wednesday 6th April at 2:00pm at this event
For further details please see the AGM post on the BTA Website

Portable Sanitation & Welfare Expo 2016,
24th – 25th February
Ricoh Arena, Coventry

Following on from the hugely successful expo last year, the 2016 event will provide an excellent platform for you to network with other professionals in the portable sanitation, liquid waste, modular buildings and welfare unit sectors.

Seminars will explore the profitable opportunities available to you and best practises in the industry. Topics include: “Social media tips and tricks to grow your business”, “Developing and embedding effective policies and procedures for lone workers” and “Diversify into luxury & expand your business”.

Register at www.ps-expo.com before the 20th February for your chance to win 12 months subscription to essential business tools for 5 staff, worth £3,000 with Advance IT Group.

I am very pleased to announce that ‘Public In-Conveniences – a practical guide to improving standards’ is now available, free of charge, on the dedicated website: www.publicinconveniences.org.uk

is a brief and easy-to-use guide for organisations which have a special interest in the provision of “away from home” toilets.

Clearly explaining the requirements of different sections of the population, dealing with policy issues, advising on the design of cubicles, nappy changing facilities and many other issues, this  carefully researched, free guide suggests ways to improve standards and encourage good practice.

The information provided is current and includes direct links for those providers who require more detailed, specific information. The guide incorporates two sections ‘Further Reading’ and ‘Sources of Further Information’ which include current legislation and British Standards.

Public In-Conveniences provides a concise, very informative guide for individuals and groups campaigning for improvements in local provision of “away from home” toilets. This free guide enables them to make strong, fact-based approaches to providers, and to make direct contact with experienced organisations.

Updated by experts to meet current requirements for information, the third edition of this concise, easy-to-use, free guide, identifies many issues which need to be considered by organisations having a special interest in the provision of ‘away from home’ toilets. Carefully researched, it suggests ways to improve standards and encourage good practice.

www.publicinconveniences.org.uk

TRUCKERS’ TOILETS UK

Campaign to improve the health & well-being of lorry drivers

July 2016 – NEWSLETTER 4-1

DEPARTMENT FOR TRANSPORT meeting: This took place at the Department of Transport in Horseferry Road, London on Friday 15 July and was an open and frank session. Taking part were Duncan Price the Head of Freight, Operator Licensing and Roadworthiness [we’d met at the RHA Annual Lunch] and David Pope, Freight Division [It was good to meet him and we got on well]. The first half of the meeting centred on HSE issues with a telephone link to the Acting Head of the Transport Sector at HSE. We discussed various concerns and came up with a list of ways forward. The second half focused on facilities on various routes. Our discussions centred around solutions suggested in Laybys, Loos & Lorry Drivers, a document that TTUK compiled with input from drivers. A further list of actions was made. This was a meeting in which the problems were highlighted and ACTIONS to improve the situation were made. There’s a lot to do, but we now have positive avenues to address and support for what we’re trying to achieve. This is just what we wanted. Watch this space!

ROAD HAULAGE ASSOCIATION: Following on from the DfT meeting Gill updated the RHA from TTUK’s perspective and was pleased at the positive response. See more under HEALTH

BREXIT: Well, it’s all change in the new cabinet and Chris Grayling is now Secretary of State for Transport. End of communication – not that there was any – with Claire Perry who resigned as Rail Minister and Richard Burden MP, Shadow Minister in Labour’s Transport Team who also resigned but who had been supportive of what TTUK is working to achieve. However MPs are not necessarily the first port of call so all is not lost. It is the communication with appropriate Government departments that matter to us. Once we’ve got the actions and solutions – and evidence – clarified and even piloted, it will be then that we will turn to our MPs to sanction the decisions. However the template for drivers to write to their MP is now available, so feel free to make your feelings known.

GOOD NEWS re AMAZON: Apparently Amazon is increasing HGV parking at their Dunfermline centre [Dunfermline Press 21/6]. Whilst this is mainly due to complaints from local people and MPs it would seem that Amazon is taking the opportunity to include welfare facilities which should reduce the current roadside urination rate. Apparently the council introduced parking restrictions but the chair of the City of Dunfermline area committee, Councillor Helen Law is quoted as saying ‘There are no facilities for the drivers and I don’t think it’s right that they can be driving the length of the country for hours and be left with no facilities.’ It’s a start but how drivers manage in the meantime we’re not told. Comments anyone? [thanks to David S for the article]

HIDDEN TALENTS: Our Ed had experience of the hidden talents of lorry drivers when she was caught up in a heavy traffic jam recently. Due to an accident cars and lorries were backed up along a busy stretch of dual carriageway between London Colney and Hatfield in Hertfordshire. Seeing that emergency services needed access out came the lorry drivers who tested the verges [by jumping on them] and then directed cars, lorries, vans onto both sides of the road enabling the fire engines and police vehicles to pass through. Impressive! She also learned that many lorry drivers are first aiders. We do need to see beyond the vehicle and appreciate the professionalism of the drivers behind the wheel. This is one of the reasons that progress in our campaign is slow – a large number of us, the public and transport organisations too, just don’t think about the person who is behind the wheel and then wonder why there’s a driver shortage!

MORE AWARENESS! June 24th was the day that the In/Out Referendum result was announced and it was also the start of Utopia Fair which took place that weekend at Somerset House. The ‘Around the Toilet’ team from Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield had 2 adjoining stands ‘Travelling Toilet Tales’ and ‘Servicing Utopia’ where there were opportunities to listen to people’s stories, design a loo and even a city. It was a fantastic opportunity to get people thinking about lorry drivers and other mobile workers. Some visitors to the stands had family members who were drivers whilst others admitted that they’d never thought that drivers had difficulties accessing a loo. Gill visited most of the stands in the courtyard to spread the word and found a lot of interest. To crown a successful weekend the taxi driver Gill hailed promised to distribute our Lorry Drivers Need Loos handout to his colleagues in the ranks he visited. Very encouraging!

SOME FRUSTRATIONS TOO! Just a little while back teachers went on strike about their working conditions presumably with union support leaving parents with the difficulties of finding childcare. OK that’s their decision but at least teachers have access to toilets during their working day – not always easy to visit when teaching a class but loos are available within the school. Lorry drivers risk a fine if they use the roadside as a loo because they do NOT have easily reachable access to toilets during THEIR working hours and they do not appear to have such active support from the Unions either. Why is there this discrimination? How did it get to this situation? Why aren’t the Unions actively addressing the problem for the mobile sector? [Note: our Ed was once a teacher]

TOILETS CONTRIBUTE TO HEALTH: One of our supporters, Mick, is doing a brilliant job talking about the importance of toilets to health and has been successful in petitioning Dunblane Community Council to reopen its loos. He kindly credits the success to the health issues Gill highlighted in a presentation at Unite the Union some while back together with the accompanying handout which has been incorporated into Unite guidance. Health and the effects on local people rather than tourism he thinks were the reasons for the success. Congratulations Mick!

WHAT A LOT OF RUBBISH! The Cleanzine editorial recently [14/7] highlighted the amount of rubbish left at the roadside and the cost of clearing it all up. The article reports that Highways England had a ‘litter strategy’ to try to educate motorists on the problems of discarding litter. After all not only does it look awful but it can be hazardous to humans as well as wildlife. However it seems that collection rates have had to be increased ‘with 139,952 bags filled between 2015 and 2016’. We are all being urged to keep a bag in our vehicle and take our rubbish home with us and why not? However using the roadside as a toilet is not so easy to address as needing the loo is not a choice! This is something that is also hazardous and requires attention – fast! But imposing a fine is NOT the answer.

MORE ON HEALTH: Thanks to another of our supporters Gill was encouraged to learn more about kidney infections. According to the NHS website on kidney infections dated 19 Dec 2014 [due to be updated this year], 1 in 830 people per year get an infection – and women are 6 time more likely to get a kidney infection than men. An interesting blog <senwaxa.blogspot.co.uk> suggests that lorry drivers are prone to kidney and bladder
infections because they’re sitting a lot. In addition the lack of toilets encourages the use and reuse of bottles for peeing but these can harbour germs which in turn leads to infection if not kept scrupulously clean. TTUK has not been able to find the number of drivers who contract kidney infections but the danger through the lack of toilets is ever present!

ACTIONS ON HEALTH! The DfT, RHA and HSE are keen to learn what excuses are given to drivers who are refused access to toilets. TTUK is working with these organisations who are now taking this scenario seriously so your input is vital. TTUK already has a list of ‘evidence’ but before passing this on [no names will be included] an update from drivers would be appreciated. So do tell us about any ‘excuse’ you’ve been given, especially this year but earlier too. You can post it on the TTUK facebook page, send a message or email Gill directly.

SNACK VAN + TOILET? TTUK is investigating the possibilities. Reaction from the first snack van owner approached was very positive. As with many things life ain’t that simple and there are various aspects of this which require solutions but it’s a good start.

TRUCKERS’ TOILETS UK www.facebook.com/TTUKcampaign

Next issue of the Truckers’ Toilets UK newsletter will be August 2016

Gillian Kemp

gillian.kemp@ntlworld.com
@atoileteer [Twitter]

Monday 9th November 2015
London

Directly following our latest management meeting, held in Westminster, we were delighted to meet with Mr Jack Sim the founder and CEO of the World Toilet Organisation. Many of you will remember that in 2005 the BTA hosted the World Toilet Summit in Belfast – the first and only time that it has been staged in the West. This event brought over 400 delegates from over 30 countries to the UK to discuss and debate toilet related issues and new technologies.

Jack was in the UK to visit and give lectures at both Oxford and Strathclyde universities. He holds a professorship in environmental studies and was speaking to students on the social and economic impacts of sanitation and hygiene issues on developing countries, business and the populous.

We had an extensive opportunity to hear about the work of the WTO and were able to confer some of our development plans for the coming year. He was excited to hear about Toilet Map and the exciting work that we are doing with Mencap and Pamis to develop this Pilot project. Additionally we spent some time discussing the difficulties that the BTA has continued to experience trying to get the government to recognise the fact that toilets are not about Waste Management but in reality Health & Well-being, Equality, Social Inclusion and personal Dignity.

Jack was astounded to hear that an estimated 50% reduction in public provision has occurred in the last 10 or so years. “where are these people going” he asked and we discussed Community schemes and Private providers. However, he recognised our concerns that independent public provision is major necessity for a transient nation and outdoor workers. Opening times are usually greater and facilities are usually visible from the moving vehicle.

He asked about street urination and defecation and we had to confirm that the incidence of this disgusting practice is now being increasing reported. “You cannot allow the UK to continue to loose its fantastic reputation as the founder of modern sanitation.” The WTO continues to wage a constant fight for the rights of over 2 billion inhabitants who have little or no access to fresh water or proper sanitation. “Don’t tell me the United Kingdom is going to slip backwards into a third world position where disease and sickness is rampant from the viral infections transmitted from dirty streets” He has agreed to write to our PM & the government outlining the absolutely disastrous path we are currently treading if closures do not cease.

We have asked for the WTO to consider granting us an opportunity to host a future summit – perhaps between 2018 – 2020. In principle Jack was extremely keen for this to become a reality and the BTA management team will now consider and debate this possibility. It is expected that he event would be set for London and we would need to secure some sizable sponsorship partners to cover the considerable costs that could be expected.