A LONG overdue renovation of the toilet facilities at Calstock Hall will be taking place this summer, thanks to a £10,000 Biffa Award grant.

The current toilets at the very well-used hall were said to be ‘pretty dire’ but the large grant, along with other fundraising, has given the hall management committee hope that fresh modern toilets will enhance the use of the facilities further.

Hall administrator Jo Tytherleigh said: ‘The toilets are pretty dire at the moment. The hall is a lovely space, right on the banks of the river, a lovely facility but it’s just a bit tired.

‘The hall was built in 1989 by a team of villagers, built largely from good will and many recycled materials. Most of the toilet furniture was bought from a factory that was closing down in Plymouth, so it was already second-hand when it was installed 27 years ago. They get lots of use, but they are just very tired.

‘The floor in the men’s toilets under the urinals is rotten and we have had problems with the soil pipes that keep blocking. We had the Kernow King visit once and had 120 people in the hall and we had to close the toilets because they got blocked.’

The committee looked into grant funding and was eligible for the Biffa Award but it seemed at one point that the funding might be pulled. It has now been told, however, that the money is definitely available.

‘The project will probably cost more than the grant but we will do our own fundraising as well and use some volunteer labour,’ said Jo. ‘A lot of people in the village are willing to offer us help, which is fantastic.’

Jo said ideas for the toilets were ongoing and regularly changing but there were a group of dedicated people in the village who were drawing up the plans for them.

She said if they could raise more money and put more money towards the project, they could do a really good job. She said there was ‘no point’ just patching bits up, they want to be able to offer a brand new, modern facility.

The plans include taking some space from the corridor to make the small men’s toilets bigger and the committee was looking into solutions such as cubicle kit packs.

Jo added: ‘It should allow us to get a better income. We often have weddings and various events at the hall and it’s off-putting for people as the toilets do let us down.’

The work is scheduled to start at the end of July/beginning of August to coincide with the beginning of the school holidays and it is hoped it will only take around two weeks to complete.

The hall will not be shut completely but will be open to regular users and groups, who will have to use the public toilets just behind the hall while the work is being carried out.