The toilet block in Bush Hill Park was boarded up last month after several months of problems, reports Grace Howarth, Local Democracy Reporter

Vandalism and littering pictured before the toilets at Bush Hill Park were closed (credit Louise Rodway)

Users of Bush Hill Park have appealed to Enfield Council to urgently tackle the antisocial behaviour issues which have led to the closure of the park’s toilets.

The toilets were closed by the council last month because of a series of long-running issues, including drug taking, littering, graffiti and other vandalism.

Louise Rodway, a local resident and regular park user, has appealed to the council to tackle the “root cause” of the problems, and said she’s worried that the toilet block closure could cause people to start to urinate elsewhere in the park.

Describing the state of the toilets before the closure, Louise said they were “a mess” and that she was “shocked” when she recently went to use them while walking through the park.

Louise said: “The men’s had been closed off already, and only the ladies and the disabled were open. I walked into the ladies toilets and then walked straight back out, because the smell was so awful.”

The council now says that it will only reopen the toilets once “resources become available” to tackle the antisocial behaviour issues.

Before the closure, Louise took photos of the state of both the ladies and disabled toilets, capturing the drug paraphernalia, littering, graffiti, and vandalism.

“It’s been an ongoing issue for years and it’s just got worse and worse,” she said.

Louise informed the council of the issue in May but, in October, said the facilities were in “exactly the same condition”.

She added: “By closing the toilets you’re not dealing with the root cause of the issue, which is the drug dealers and the vandals who are leaving the toilets in that mess.”

Bush Hill Park Residents’ Association chair Derek Wheeler has also called the closure “arbitrary” and said local people were disappointed it had taken place with “no consultation to either community groups or park users”.

He said: “We are anxious that these lavatories are returned to public use, as quickly as possible, they are an important asset to Bush Hill Park Recreation Ground.”

Derek said that the association had been aware of the “poor state of repair and conditions” of the toilets for years and “over many months” had raised the issue repeatedly with the council.

In response Chinelo Anyanwu, cabinet member for environment, culture and public spaces, said: “We understand that Bush Hill Park is at the heart of the local community, so it is very disappointing that our public toilets have suffered from a high level of vandalism. In the past, the council has locked the public toilets in line with the park’s closing times to prevent anti-social behaviour.

“Unfortunately, the toilets are still being broken into, so given the ongoing issues reported to us, we have boarded the area for now, while we investigate appropriate long-term antisocial behaviour prevention measures. Once resources become available to implement these measures, we will be able to repair and reopen the toilet facilities.

“Enfield Council is committed to provide quality facilities and drive improvement in our services to ensure they are accessible, including public toilets in our parks. If you witness vandalism at a public toilet in Enfield, you can report it to Enfield Council using the ‘report a problem’ page on the website here or contact the police.”

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