Sydney council votes unanimously to upgrade to gender-neutral public loos

A Sydney council will “take a positive decision to remove gender-based signage” on public amenities in a push for inclusivity.

A Sydney council will push forward with its plan to remove gendered signing to make public toilets more inclusive.

A Sydney council will push forward with its plan for gender-neutral public toilets as part of a sweeping strategy to make the amenities as inclusive and welcoming as possible.

Last week, Inner West councillors voted unanimously to adopt a Public Toilet Strategy that includes a suggestion to “take a positive decision to remove gender-based signage” on public amenities across the local government area.

Gender-neutral bathrooms have become somewhat of a flashpoint in the transgender rights culture wars. Picture: iStock.

Signage should instead identify what facilities and features are available inside.

The strategy’s design guidelines also recommend against installing communal urinals – for their “safety, maintenance and vandalism risks” – in favour of single urinals with “modesty screens”.

“The aim of this design guideline is to ensure public toilets across the Inner West LGA are welcoming, safe, accessible and inclusive for everyone regardless of age, gender, race, religion and disability,” the strategy said.

“The decision to provide unisex, gender neutral or gender assigned toilets needs to be decided on a case-by-case basis,” it continued. That would include considerations of capacity, use, size, demand, and community opinion.

“However, Council’s position is to move towards non-gendered facilities.”

The strategy said unisex toilets were preferred for the LGA as they are “best positioned to reduce vandalism and undesirable behaviour”.

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The Public Toilet Strategy proposes sweeping changes to make public amenities more inclusive. Picture: Peter Ristevski

Inner West Council deputy mayor Philippa Scott said community and stakeholder consultation would determine what the spaces look like, but the strategy provides a framework of principles and considerations when building.

“Not every block will include every element of the design guidelines, but they are a set of considerations to factor in when refurbishing or building a public toilet block,” she told the Sydney Morning Herald.

At the deciding council meeting last week, Cr Scott moved an amendment to add period product dispensing machines to the design guidelines for public toilets – to continue a 12 month trial of 10 such vending machines at select Council facilities.

She said it was “striking” there was no mention of the machines in the strategy as part of the infrastructure and suggested council consider adding them to the design guidelines as an “aspirational goal that such facilities are provided in more public toilet facilities”.

Inner West deputy mayor Philippa Scott. Picture: Supplied

The councillor asked for a report on the cost and operational feasibility of including those machines in Inner West public toilets at the end of the current 12-month trial.

She also thanked staff for the “considerable effort” they went to “treat public toilets and hygiene facilities with the seriousness that it deserves”.

Bathrooms have become somewhat of a touchstone in the transgender culture wars in Australia and abroad.

Whether at a high school or a university, the nation’s most hallowed sporting ground, or the Sydney Opera House – where an “all gender” bathroom led to an awkward urinal incident during last year’s Vivid festival.

Even former Prime Minister Scott Morrison shared his frustrations over a “ridiculous” gender neutral sign bathroom at his Canberra office in 2019.

The sign outside women’s toilet in the office of Prime Minister and Cabinet in Canberra. Picture: Twitter

According to minutes of a September 2020 Inner West council meeting, the draft public toilet strategy received “largely positive” feedback from the public – with 22 submissions made during the public exhibition period.

Although the feedback provided to the Inner West and included in the 2020 Engagement Outcomes Report was not available, other studies have shown a variety of sentiments about inclusive public bathrooms.

A survey for the City of Sydney’s 2014 Public Toilet Strategy showed 75 per cent of women indicated a strong preference for single-sex toilets over unisex facilities due to concerns over privacy (32 per cent), hygiene (29 per cent) and security (19 per cent).

Meanwhile 43 per cent of males reported no preference for either single or unisex toilets.

Those who preferred unisex toilets did so for increased flexibility (28 per cent) and improved hygiene (19 per cent).

Surveys have found women have a stronger preference for single-gender toilets than men. Picture: Peter Ristevski

A 2017 survey by Wingecaribee Shire Council in the NSW Southern Highlands also found women had a stronger preference for gendered bathroom facilities than men.

But a 2022 study out of Perth found toilets were the “least safe spaces in educational institutions” for sexual and gender-diverse students.

The study found they were sites of “verbal, physical and sexual victimisation” and that providing gender-neutral bathrooms in schools may reduce bullying and victimisation of LGBTQI+ students, particularly those who are trans or gender-diverse.

Inner West Councillor Liz Atkins noted at the meeting, the council’s Public Toilet Strategy’s inclusion of “gender neutrality in the best practice criteria” was praised by LGBTQI+ community group ACON.

Inner West Councillor Liz Atkins. Picture: Supplied

“I have been told by our friends and colleagues at ACON that the Inner West is well ahead of most other local government areas in our Public Toilet Strategy,” Cr Atkins told the meeting, adding it was something “very important to the community”.

Inner West Council refused to comment further on the Public Toilet Strategy plan progress or community feedback to the plans when requested by news.com.au.

News.com.au also contacted ACON for comment on their response to the strategy and the council’s plan to integrate gender neutral public bathrooms.

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Originally published as Sydney council votes unanimously to upgrade to gender-neutral public loos