VANDALISED toilets in Melksham have been closed until the New Year as council contractors repair the damage.

Vandals wrecked the toilets in Bath Road earlier this month causing more than £1,000 worth of damage.

Melksham town councillors are now considering the future of the toilets near the town park, and may cut back on the opening hours to beat the vandals.

Owned by west Wiltshire District Council, the toilets are maintained by contractors Interpublic Urban Systems, which estimates the repair bill for the damage caused in the attack on December 1 at £1,000.

The toilets, one of only three public facilities in the town, will now be closed until January with opening times set to be cut back to stop further vandalism attacks.

At a town council meeting on Monday, councillors said the toilets could not be shut down permanently as it would leave parents and children using the park without s.

Cllr Alan Weymouth said: "The park toilets are there for a reason we are trying to encourage people not to use the town hall steps as a toilet.

"I would not be in support of closing down any more facilities."

Cllr Vic Oakman said: "I would be loath to see the toilets closed down as we are trying to make people use the nearby Riverside Walk."

Ideas floated included cutting down the opening hours in winter months, keeping just the disabled toilet open or closing the facility on weekends.