A WEYMOUTH seafront toilet block controversially closed last year has been sold for £282,000.

Weymouth and Portland Borough Council has confirmed the sale of the Bond Street block, which also includes a four-bedroom apartment above the former toilets.

It was sold to the highest bidder who were a couple, Mr and Mrs Shipton from Buckinghamshire, for £282,000.

Their plans for the site have not yet been made public.

The money will now go back into council reserves so that councillors can use it for projects to support the town.

Last year, councillors decided to sell off the public toilets that had become too costly to maintain.

Weymouth and Portland Borough Council put the building, at 47a The Esplanade but accessed by Bond Street, up for sale by tender in 2016.

It emerged at a council meeting in February this year that a sale had been agreed subject to conditions. But the sale was only confirmed on Friday.

Cllr Kate Wheller, WPBC spokesman for community facilities, which includes public conveniences, welcomed the news.

She said: "I know the Bond Street facility was not ideal, but I would have liked us to have a permanent replacement to that before we sold that site. However that was not to be, and I'm pleased it has all now been completed. I am very optimistic that the alternatives we will be putting in place is something residents will be happy with."

There was concern this year about the lack of provision of public toilets on the central seafront after the closure of the Bond Street block.

To compensate, the council has provided temporary toilets for the summer – located outside the Pavilion.

The Echo reported last week that a major revamp of Weymouth seafront toilet facilities is to be considered by the council.

A charging scheme could be imposed at some locations, including at a proposed new block in the area of the King's Statue which would replace the ageing underground loos.

The proposals from the council come after improvements were called for in a report on local facilities by the British Toilet Association (BTA).

Weymouth and Portland Borough Council's management committee is set to discuss the proposals at a meeting on Tuesday.