Last week Help The Aged reported new research which revealed that some older people with incontinence have had to resort to using buckets and jugs in order to avoid an accident in public.

We also revealed findings which showed more than half of older people are put off from going out because of lack of public toilets. Local authorities should be ashamed of this.

It is the duty of local authorities to promote the health and well being of all local people. Making sure that there are enough accessible, clean and safe public toilets is just one simple measure which can help enhance life for all local people, not just those who are in older age.

It is a national disgrace that 80 per cent of older people surveyed by Help The Aged also said they found it difficult to find a public toilet when they needed one.

There is only one public toilet for every 10,000 people in the UK, not taking into account visitors, and this is already in rapid decline as councils take a short term and illogical decision to close them.

The Victorians recognised the importance of public health and started the trend towards public sanitation.

We want people to be able to go out and about so they keep socially connected, physically active and take part in society. Are we really happy to know that a significant and growing section of our community feels it cannot go out because a basic human need cannot be met?

Pamela Holmes, Help the Aged, London.