Design - Location of school toilets

Modern design favours an open plan approach incorporating clear sight lines, eliminating hidden corners and the adoption of hand-washing areas (that may be mixed sex, if appropriate), easily visible outside the washroom area and open to circulation areas – which allows staff to passively supervise the toilets.  Toilets should be sited within the heart of a school rather than at its far reaches.

• Toilets should ideally be sited adjacent to or opposite adult areas e.g. an office.
• Currently many pupils have to travel some distance within the school to get to the toilet. This can make teachers reluctant to let pupils out of class to visit the toilet. Toilets located away from classrooms present particular difficulties for pupils with special needs.
• Toilets attached to each classroom or cluster of classrooms are a particularly good solution for younger pupils. These allow pupils easier access to toilets during lessons and enable teachers to keep a closer eye on pupils.
• In some schools, pupils are not allowed to go to the toilet at certain times because teachers do not want them inside the building during break. Toilets which can be accessed directly from outdoor recreation spaces, as well as from the inside of the building, could solve this problem.
• Toilets located throughout the school makes visiting them easier (particularly for pupils who have difficulty 'holding on'). It also means pupils will not be wandering around the corridors.
• If practical, toilets for specific year groups could be provided, in addition to general toilets. This would help diminish the fear of intimidation.
• Toilets need to be near playing fields and next to playgrounds. Purpose-built ‘pods’ (built off site) are one solution. Some are self-cleaning.
• Rooms where exams may be taken should also have toilets close by. These include assembly halls and sports halls.
• Drinking water facilities should not be sited in a toilet area. Pupils should not be expected to drink from wash basin taps.

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