12 March 2024 , 10:59
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Cheltenham locals have been offered 'anti-pee paint' for this year's festival - to stop "disrespectful" punters weeing on their homes.
People are "sick" of seeing boozy revellers urinating in public after watching the horse racing, the local council says. So a 'war on wee' has been declared - with water-repellent paint made available to residents and businesses. Cheltenham Festival begins today (March 12), with more than 250,000 people expected to descend on the Gloucestershire town in the next four days.
Cllr Max Wilkinson, of Cheltenham Borough Council, said: "Cheltenham people are sick of seeing a minority of disrespectful racegoers urinating in public in broad daylight. It's absolutely not on. We want people to have a good time and enjoy the races, but please treat our town with respect too.
"There are plenty of extra temporary loos placed all around the town and there's no excuse for weeing in broad daylight. People who decide to wee in public should be under no illusion they could end up with wet trousers if they pick one of the walls covered in water-repellent paint."
Cheltenham Borough Council launched the initiative for the first time in 2023. Heath Gunter, chief executive at Cheltenham BID, said: "As last year, we are hoping that the water-repellent paint will discourage individuals from urinating on the walls in town. Such behaviour is unpleasant to witness and creates extra cleaning responsibilities for local businesses. The BID are happy to support the council with this initiative.''
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The council said it is also working with Cheltenham racecourse and Gloucestershire Constabulary to increase the number of temporary public toilets, visibility at key points and junctions and issue fixed penalty notices where necessary for those who still chose to urinate in public.