UK centre goes potty for Middle East toilets

Turkish toilets or Nile pans are considered more hygienic as the body does not touch a possibly unclean surface.

RELATED ARTICLES: 'Stealth' toilet flushes out water wastage | US engineers laud low-cost Indian toilets | Panasonic comes clean with auto toilets

A shopping centre in the UK has installed Middle East style toilets for Asian customers after bosses went on a cultural-awareness course.

Turkish toilets or Nile pans, which require users to squat above them rather than sit, are the norm in many countries, including China, Japan, Argentina and Turkey. They are viewed as more hygienic as the body does not touch a possibly unclean surface. However, they are rarely seen in Britain.

The Rochdale Exchange centre in Lancashire, home to around 70 shops, said it was simply catering for the needs of its diverse community.

Story continues below

Advertisement

FEATURED COMMENT Is the UK going nuts? PC gone mad.   1 Comments Read more comments »

As it was to refurbish its existing 14 toilets, it was decided to convert two of them, one for males and one for females, into ‘squat’ toilets.

Community activist Ghulam Rasul Shahzad said management decided to offer a wider range of WCs after attending one of his training courses.

The retired Rochdale council training officer, who also runs ‘community cohesion’ courses for police, took centre manager Lorenzo O’Reilly and his team on a tour of the town’s central mosque, including a look at its toilets.

“The centre management is very committed to improving the service it offers the community, and was very responsive,” said Shahzad.

The centre in the Lancashire town has dismissed suggestions that this signifies the ‘Islamification’ of the great British toilet. Britain has a strong heritage of pioneering lavatorial invention.