MONEY being spent on refurbishing toilets in the Town Hall during the peak tourist season should have gone to the Covered Market, it has been claimed.

Oxford City Council has said that more people visiting the St Aldate’s building has put pressure on its ground floor toilets, which are being given a major overhaul.

But Wolvercote city councillor Jean Fooks has complained that work being carried out is ill-timed and will not address availability problems.

She said: “This is the peak tourist season when lots of people come to see Town Hall, visit the museum or have a coffee in the cafe.

“It is not visitor-friendly to find that, although there are now a small number of ladies’ loos where the gents used to be, the gents have to go upstairs and very out of the way, which is simply not possible for anyone less mobile.”

Mrs Fooks also hit out at the cost of the refurbishment, currently set to be £250,000.

Oxford City Council spokeswoman Louisa Dean said: “The work has been timed to coincide with what are relatively quiet months for events at the Town Hall.

“If the work were to take place in busier months, the reduced toilet capacity available would mean that we would be unable to host some very popular and well attended events.

“The work will be completed in August and will result in a great improvement for all visitors to the Town Hall.”

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