A TOWN council has been told it could have to pay the full market value if it wants to buy threatened public loos in Frinton - and a block in Walton is unlikely to be sold at all.

Loos in Frinton’s Old Way and Mill Lane, in Walton, are set to be closed by Tendring Council as part of its plan to close ten public lavatories in a bid to save cash.

The move led to the launch of the We Want to Wee campaign, which has seen a 1,100-name petition handed to council bosses.

Frinton and Walton Town Council mayor Robert Bucke wrote to the district council about whether the town council could take on the facilities.

Mr Bucke told town councillors that Tendring Council does not want to sell the dilapidated Mill Lane toilets as the site could form part of the district council’s long-term plans to redevelop the wider Mill Lane area.

He added the district council would be “more amenable” to selling off the Old Way toilets, but that an unrestricted disposal would have to be at market value.

“We want the Old Way toilets for nil consideration for us to spend money on and maintain thereafter,” he said.

“We wouldn’t want to do anything other than keep it open as a toilet.”

The district council suggested the council could fund the toilets for a period to ensure they remain open.

But councillor Terry Allen said the town council could do a better job of running the toilets, given the state of the Mill Lane block.

He added: “They’re in a right mess. We could keep them better. If we could raise a penny per day per household, we could raise a sum of money to do that.”

Tendring Council warned Mr Bucke the cost of and issues involved in running a public toilet can be underestimated and finding staff can be hard.

Walton councillor Jack Robertson suggested pay entry toilets could stop vandalism and added: “Who are Tendring Council to tell us what toilets are like? They have got some of the worst toilets.

“They are absolutely diabolical – they haven’t had a deep clean for years.”

But Walton councillor Delyth Miles said a contribution towards the cost of running the toilets would be a “good compromise”.

She added “We have a powerful petition with over 1,000 signatures – it’s a good starting point to negotiate.”