The Secret Guide to Leeds Toilets

[Leodian]

You are right Phill in that the toilets leading off from the subway under City Station were rank. I wonder if they are still intact? PS. Talking of toilets, when there was some work going on at Briggate near the junction with Boar Lane a couple or so years back I asked one of the workmen if they had encountered the old toilets there (which I believed were still intact) and he said they had come across them but were covered over again.PPS (or should that be Pee Pee S ). I wonder if the old toilets at the Corn Exchange are still intact (you went down the steps that are still there to get to the toilets) and also the toilets near the entrance to the Town Hall on Great George Street? Public conveniences in Leeds are now not convenient!

[Jogon]

I want everyone to be generous with their secret knowledge here - don't be keeping a good one to yourself.I suppose we do have to give thanks to McDonalds here. Anything known in the Park Row > Albion St zone?

[BLAKEY]

Phill_dvsn wrote: I think some of the worst toilets in Leeds had to be the ones in Leeds City Station, the ones you went down stairs to under the subway to different platforms. It's been covered on S.L before, and it's been blocked off since the new station rebuild. I always remember it absolutely stunk, and the Durex machine had a really ironic, but funny piece of graffiti on it. It said ''Insert baby for refund'' Oh those infernal things !! - Quite apart from the stench and the filth (and the queue for refunds) for anyone over five feet tall they were really dangerous. The brilliant architect had chosen to install a solid sharp concrete horizontal beam full length of the stalls, and unless you leaned back like an agile ballet dancer you were likely to suffer a bruised or fractured forehead OH, please pay attention there !! - foreHEAD !!         

[liits]

If you find yourself in the awkward position of needing the loo I would suggest you get yourself a “Just Can’t Wait” card from the Bladder & Bowel Foundationand a RADAR KeyI was tinkered about with by the NHS a few years ago and found them invaluable to the point where I couldn’t leave the house without them.The card itself is really handy as lots of places don’t welcome the casual p***er.THe Bladder & Bowel Foundation also have an e-petition on there website to help prevent the closure of anymore public loos.http://www.bladderandbowelfoundation.org/    

[Chrism]

liits wrote: If you find yourself in the awkward position of needing the loo I would suggest you get yourself a “Just Can’t Wait” card from the Bladder & Bowel Foundationand a RADAR KeyI was tinkered about with by the NHS a few years ago and found them invaluable to the point where I couldn’t leave the house without them.The card itself is really handy as lots of places don’t welcome the casual p***er.THe Bladder & Bowel Foundation also have an e-petition on there website to help prevent the closure of anymore public loos.http://www.bladderandbowelfoundation.org/     Bladder and Bowel, BAB. Sorry couldn't help it.

[raveydavey]

As has been mentioned there are free toilets in McD's in the St Johns, or if you're feeling flush you could use the 20p a visit public toilets at the far end of the balcony. Oddly the ones in McD's are much busier...Small but clean (usually) free toilets can be found in Debenhams on the top floor near the cafe. Top tip here is that there is a "direct to the cafe lift" from a small door on Kirkgate - this also takes you virtually to the door of the loo (isn't this type of insider knowledge just what Secret Leeds was invented for?).In The Light there are "pay" public loos tucked away off the mezzanine level (same side as the Chinese restaurant, so across one of the bridges) that aren't widely signposted. There are also toilets on the very top floor of the cinema, but they are the wrong side of a ticket barrier.There are also "pay" toilets in the market but these are grim (in every sense), despite being staffed and I'd only recommend them in an emergency....it's a shame the magnificent original tiled facilities below the market (by the Kirkgate entrance and also at the George Street side) were allowed to deteriorate and then be closed.There were also some basic but functionary toilets on the top floor of the Schofields / Headrow / Core Shopping Centre before the last refurb but I don't know if they survived.Are there any in VQ? It's somewhere I rarely visit.In my opinion this is another reason why places like the White Rose prosper - not only can you park for free and are under cover whilst shopping, but there is a plentiful supply of clean and free toilets to use. Hopefully the Trinity and Eastgate developments will have ample provision installed.

[Jogon]

RaveyThe Debenhams Lift:- I pressed the button last week and stood there waiting until my eyes bulged. It didn't come.I was then 'pipped' onto the escalator by the worlds slowest people.

[raveydavey]

This article is on the YEP website and raises similar concerns:http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/n ... _4089181My understanding of the DDA (see the article / comments) is that premises only have to comply if "new build" or "substantially altered or upgraded" - so has this piece of legislation been wrongly blamed as one of the reasons for a lack of public toilets?    

[LS1]

raveydavey wrote: As has been mentioned there are free toilets in McD's in the St Johns, or if you're feeling flush you could use the 20p a visit public toilets at the far end of the balcony. Oddly the ones in McD's are much busier...Small but clean (usually) free toilets can be found in Debenhams on the top floor near the cafe. Top tip here is that there is a "direct to the cafe lift" from a small door on Kirkgate - this also takes you virtually to the door of the loo (isn't this type of insider knowledge just what Secret Leeds was invented for?).In The Light there are "pay" public loos tucked away off the mezzanine level (same side as the Chinese restaurant, so across one of the bridges) that aren't widely signposted. There are also toilets on the very top floor of the cinema, but they are the wrong side of a ticket barrier.There are also "pay" toilets in the market but these are grim (in every sense), despite being staffed and I'd only recommend them in an emergency....it's a shame the magnificent original tiled facilities below the market (by the Kirkgate entrance and also at the George Street side) were allowed to deteriorate and then be closed.There were also some basic but functionary toilets on the top floor of the Schofields / Headrow / Core Shopping Centre before the last refurb but I don't know if they survived.Are there any in VQ? It's somewhere I rarely visit.In my opinion this is another reason why places like the White Rose prosper - not only can you park for free and are under cover whilst shopping, but there is a plentiful supply of clean and free toilets to use. Hopefully the Trinity and Eastgate developments will have ample provision installed. Market loos are free now. (Well, the ones where the fish market used to be are anyway.) Surprisingly clean also!

[Jogon]

ls1Thanks for the 'market' tip. They used to be very 'hit and miss'.I shouldn't moan without offering a solution, and I think the solution might be to collate all accessible (tried and tested) Leeds Loos.Maybe just town centre.Pay and otherwise and put them up (somewhere) as a pdf "Leeds Lavvys, Live em, love em Leavem etc".I've immediately spotted a prob tho' - I can buy a half and use Whitelocks etc but they are not public loos (NB- the last time I was in Whitelocks one eve 3 + years ago the young staff lady was complaining about a couple 'sh*gging' in there..).So I s'pose it is best left/kept as a Secret Guide to Leeds Toilets, or perhaps a Guide to Leeds Secret Toilets. Think I read that all premises selling alco have to have loos, dunno if that applies to coffee shops..?Debenhams is a personal fave, though I don't suggest any form of S.L. meeting there. ps - How do we recognise each other in civvy st?