The Chalice Well Toilet block in Glastonbury has scooped an award in the Loo of the Year competition. The competition, which is dedicated the finding the best places to 'go' in the UK, took place in Birmingham, with the toilets at the Chalice Well beating their rivals in the UK Parks and Gardens category of the competition, which includes Abbey Gardens in Winchester and Royal Parks and Gardens of Kensington.
"The awards ceremony took place earlier this month at the National Motor Cycle Museum," said Jacqueline Redmond, a spokeswoman for the Chalice Well Trust.
"The inspector who marked us said we were one of the best and received the top 5 Star grading for our loo and in due course, we found out at the presentation that we had won the award for England, there was much celebration."
The new toilets were sparked off by Ann Proctor, an ex-trustee, who chose to make a donation towards a long planned new loo build, having received a legacy.
"Previously, we only had one toilet to serve all our visitors, which made queuing and waiting a little tense at busy events," Ms Redmond added.
"The new build has provided us with ladies, gents, disabled and baby changing facilities thus relieving the queuing situation considerably..
"Since the ceremony, the Trust have spoken with the Loo of the Year Awards, and they are very interested in promoting and acknowledging the smaller organisation in a larger context, so that they can reward a commitment to a high standard of service to the public.
"Some of the other materials we used were: lime render and lime wash which allows the walls to breathe, locally sourced timber, sustainable oak, recycled aggregate blocks, and natural light tunnels which magnify the natural light and help us light the loos," Ms Redmond added.
"Keeping in mind the green issues of the day, we created the new toilets with sustainability and recycling in mind."
Created using local talent, including architect Wilf Burton and builders Gary and David Williams, the building is made from locally sourced timber, with lime render and wash, and include a sedum grass roof, and light tunnels to magnify the natural light from outdoors.
"We're so grateful to Simon Wardle, Wilf Burton, Gary and David Williams, Martin and Shane Faulkner for all their help and support with the project – all their work went a long way towards our success."
Take a look at the pictures of this development in the GDW Building & Renovations portfolio