PLANS for the so-called Weymouth seafront 'superloo' are now available.

The £400,000 scheme involves refurbishing and extending the existing Esplanade beach office.

Plans for the new building show a new upper floor beach office, unisex toilets, disabled-friendly toilets, a family room and beach showers as well as a single storey extension to include a beach kiosk.

The budget for the building had been put between £370,000 and £424,000.

It is expected that the loo may become the first in the town where customers will be charged to use the facilities – with a fee of between 20p and 50p suggested during discussions last year.

The new superloo is not likely to be in operation until the 2020 season unless the existing tenants volunteer to surrender their leases early, or the Dorset Council finds the extra money to end the contracts before their full term.

The British Toilet Association report on Weymouth identified that there were not enough loos for people using the beach in the holiday season.

For the coming season there is expected to be a temporary toilet on the seafront, positioned near Alexandra Gardens, with the temporary toilets which were in the Pavilion car park not being replaced.

All of the town's loos were refurbished and repaired in recent weeks – one of the last acts of the borough council before it was disbanded at the end of March.

The planning application says of the site: “This is the most logical location for the extra toilets as it is above and adjacent to the existing underground toilets, contains accessible WCs and a “changing places” facility. This proposal will provide an extra 22 toilets, an accessible WC, a family room and a parenting room. By providing this accommodation within an extended building it avoids the erection of a new building on the esplanade.

“The provision of the toilets results in the existing refreshment kiosk being relocated into a small extension to the north end of the building along with its store and a small kiosk. The re-provision of the refreshment kiosk is required as provides a safe service adjacent to the people on the beach as it removes the need for families to cross the busy Esplanade.”

The building will see a lift installed so the beach control office, on the first floor, will be accessible to those with mobility problems.

The application has not yet attracted any public comments and only one statutory consultee has remarked on the scheme. Natural England says that it considers that the proposed development will not have significant adverse impacts.

The application can be seen on the Dorset Council website and has the reference – WP/19/00150/FUL