Two North Walsham toilets to be closed early following vandalism

Date published: 29th October 2026

From today, Council-owned toilets at Vicarage Street and New Road are to be temporarily closed at 4PM each day, after the latest incidents of vandalism.  
  
Incidents include smashed toilet seats, damaged disabled & baby changing facilities, broken partitions, graffiti, damaged soap dispensers and other deliberate damage to fixtures and fittings.  
  
Over the last 12 months, the Vicarage Street conveniences have seen a total of 14 instances of vandalism, while New Road has experienced 21.   
  
The cost to the Council in terms of replacing damaged parts or utilities inside the conveniences exceeds £4,400, and factoring in labour, maintenance and repair would be considerably higher.  
  
Cllr. Lucy Shires said: “These repairs are paid for from public funds and every pound spent fixing vandalism is a pound that cannot be spent on improving local services.  

We ask everyone to help look after these facilities and report incidents of anti-social behaviour where possible.  

Thank you to the many residents who use the facilities responsibly and help us keep them available for everyone."  
  
The toilets at New Road underwent significant refurbishment in May 2022, and in January 2023, the entire Vicarage Street unit was demolished and replaced with an upgraded facility including Changing Places facilities.  
 
All incidents of vandalism are reported to the police.