Blood and bodily fluids are frequently being left on walls and sinks in a town's public toilets, forcing council chiefs to shut them.

Discarded needles have also been found at the facilities in Cavendish Street in Ramsgate, which have become a hotspot for ongoing and regular anti-social and criminal behaviour.

Members of the public and the staff who manage the toilets are met with aggression and abuse, and in some cases have had to leave quickly for their own safety.

In January they were closed for more than a week in order for repairs to take place, but the abuse and vandalism started again as soon as they opened, with the situation worsening.

Meetings with the Community Safety Team have been held to explore options to address the problems, but no affordable solutions have been found.

Cllr George Kup, cabinet member for community safety and youth engagement, says the decision to close the toilets has not been taken lightly and reflects the need to protect the public and staff from the effects of unacceptable behaviour in the toilets.

"This includes leaving items such as discarded but concealed hypodermic needles and blood and other bodily fluids on surfaces including the walls and wash basins," he said.

"Closing this toilet facility is not a cost saving exercise. In fact, it will have a negligible impact on the cost of delivering the service.

"It’s about protecting members of the public and our staff who have suffered abuse, aggressive behaviour and intimidation from some toilet users and, on occasion, have had to leave the site quickly for their own safety."

The closest alternative public toilets, including a radar key-operated accessible toilet, are at Pier Yard, a five-minute walk away, and Screaming Alley, a 15-minute walk, which are open all year round from 8am to 6pm.

Funding has been granted for the installation of additional CCTV at several locations throughout Ramsgate town centre, including at a number of alleyways and cut-throughs including the passage between Leopold Street and York Street.

These works are scheduled to take place between March and May 2022.

The council says this investment will help to discourage the displacement of this antisocial behaviour to other nearby locations, but it will not mitigate the issues at Cavendish Street and will not therefore influence the closure.