Public toilets in Cambridge

Open for comments from Wednesday 23 October to Wednesday 4 December 2024.

The council has been working for a number of years to transform and modernise how it operates.

Through the ‘Our Cambridge’ transformation programme we have already improved the way services are delivered, while also finding significant savings.

We currently spend £97.2 million per year to deliver services in Cambridge (of which £26.2 million is received from Government and passed directly to Housing Benefit recipients). Due to factors largely outside our control, these operating costs are rising.   

These operating costs are paid for mainly from the income we generate from fees and charges, Council Tax and Business Rates, commercial property rent, and Government grants. This income is not increasing in line with the increase in costs, and it is not sustainable for the council’s expenditure to be higher than its income year after year.   

We therefore need to take action to reduce the budget gap. The council’s Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) sets out an initial commitment to reduce the council’s annual net expenditure by £6 million by 1 April 2026.   

Because the council’s finances have been well managed to date, we have time to take a measured approach to finding savings. We will continue to focus on modernising and finding efficiencies to bring down costs and, through our Community Wealth Building work, help voluntary organisations, charities and social enterprises to address pressing community needs.

We have identified that £2.5 million per year could be saved by making further changes to the council’s organisational structure – this work is underway.   

A further £3.5 million per year could be saved by making changes to council services, such as making changes to some of the discretionary services that we offer or charges for some services.  

The council charges users for several of its services. This is an important source of income, bringing in around £23 million every year. Without this income, many services would have to stop. We could increase fees and charges in some areas, or start charging for services we currently provide for free.

Public toilets

We are reviewing the provision of public toilets as part of finding these £3.5 million savings. We want to ensure we meet community needs while using resources effectively. Your responses will help us determine which facilities to keep and maintain, where charges may be appropriate, and the level of service expected.  

The council manages 14 public toilets. We have recently invested in refurbishing a number of them (including Cherry Hinton Hall and Drummer Street, with work underway at Silver Street), ensuring we are able to offer ‘Changing Places’ toilets across the city.   

Some public toilets are used far less than others but still require maintenance. We also meet the costs of recurring vandalism.   

The council could reduce the overall number of public toilets it manages, and maintain high quality facilities where there is a proven need. This could save an estimated £305,000 per year.

Have your say

We are reviewing the provision of public toilets as part of finding £3.5 million worth of savings. We want to ensure we meet community needs while using resources effectively.

Your responses will help us determine which facilities to keep and maintain, where charges may be appropriate, and the level of service expected.

Select the 'Take the survey' button on this page to have your say.

For further information, emailed us at parks@cambridge.gov.uk.

Next steps

Following the public consultation, a report will be put to the Environment and Scrutiny Committee on 20 March 2025 to agree a range of changes to how we deliver and provide public toilets.