Estimated Price

£18,740

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Summary

The grant will be used to provide a much needed refurbishment to the ladies, gents and easily accessible toilets at The MAXwell Centre. Our project has a footfall of over 2,500 each month and our centre is the nearest available toilets for visitors enjoying the facilities and attending events in the Hilltown Park. The current toilets are in very poor condition, bitterly cold in winter and no longer fit for purpose. It has been nearly 20 years since any refurbishment has taken place.

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Description

This project will address the Local Priorities:

- Improve safety, accessibility and equipment in outdoor recreation spaces for families and young people

- Improve community facilities to support wider range of projects

The grant will be used to provide a much needed refurbishment to the ladies, gents and easily accessible/unisex toilets at The MAXwell Centre. Our project alone has a footfall of over 2,500 each month and our centre is the nearest available toilets for visitors to enjoying the facilities and attending events in the Hilltown Park. Improve safety, accessibility and equipment in outdoor recreational spaces for families and young people was a key local Coldside priority identified by our very own youth council for this funding. This grant would allow us to open our facilities to accommodate the increase in footfall that the improvements to play facilities and the outdoor recreation areas in the park would create. We would install signage in the park that our toilet facilities are open to all not just MAXwell participants. Part of our plans for the coming year is to provide more evening and weekend activities, this would increase the open times of the centre and allow access to toilet facilities for longer hours. We also have plans to increase the growing spaces in the park enhancing the recreational spaces. We have been key to developing the Berry Train, Coldside’s Playful nature trail with the Hilltown Park being the start point of the route! This is also a perfect fit for the local Coldside priority. We have recently signed a new lease with our landlords to access the large hall upstairs above the centre. This fits with the local priority Improve community facilities to support a wider range of projects that address issues affecting local people. The additional space will allow us to set up new groups and have new meeting rooms and private spaces. We are well known as a one stop shop for support and our new space will allow us to engage with a wider range of partners to deliver their services and activities in the Coldside area. Our footfall continues to increase year after year. This grant also meets our city plan outcome that our communities have high quality and accessible local services and facilities. Our project is truly representative of the broad spectrum of people of all ages, genders, ethnicities, religions, etc. that we have in the area. Our project breaks down barriers and brings people together in an environment that promotes interaction, integration and to empower them to improve their lives and the place they live in.The current toilets are in very poor condition, bitterly cold in winter and no longer fit for purpose. It has been nearly 20 years since any refurbishment has taken place. The hand driers don’t work making us reliant on expensive, less environmentally friendly paper towels. Lighting is poor and overall the facilities are difficult to clean and maintain.

We engaged our youth council to consult with our young people about the refit. We were disappointed to hear that some of our youths actually find the toilets ‘scary’. Lowering the ceiling and installing floor to ceiling cubicles would make the facilities safer and more pleasant to use. The easily accessible toilet will also be gender neutral, ensuring inclusivity for all. We will also make improvements for hand washing/ drying and new lighting would make the space brighter. All the upgrades will make the facilities more sustainable.

The current toilets are in very poor condition, bitterly cold in winter and the gents urinals are no longer fit for purpose. It has been nearly 20 years since any refurbishment has been done. The hand driers don’t work making us reliant on expensive, less environmentally friendly paper towels. Lighting is poor and overall the facilities are difficult to clean and maintain. We engaged our youth council to consult with our young people who quickly established the refurbishment was a key priority. We have 100’s of children a year using the toilets each year as part of our activities. We were disappointed to hear that some of our youths actually find the toilets ‘scary’. Lowering the ceiling and floor to ceiling cubicles would make the facilities safer and more pleasant to use. They identified the need for improvements to hand washing and drying facilities especially before lunch! New lighting was also identified as a priority making the space brighter and using more environmentally friendly bulbs. Our youth council are passionate about supporting us to achieve our local outcome that children will be safe, healthy, achieving, nurtured, active, respected, responsible and included. The easily accessible toilet will also be gender neutral to ensure inclusivity for all. We also conducted a series of community consultations in 2022 to improve facilities in the park. This consultation highlighted the need for access to toilet facilities was essential to increased engagement and park usage. Finally, we have a dedicated team of over 70 volunteers who take ownership of our project and ensure that it continues to be supported. They are true ambassadors of the centre and our work, many have been involved in discussions around the need for the refurbishment and it’s planning.