Since the launch of the BINS4Blokes campaign in June 2021, 50 businesses, councils and other organisations have joined the call to support over one million men around Australia who live with incontinence.
At least 1.34 million Australian boys and men are living with urinary or faecal incontinence today, however male toilets do not provide a hygienic and dedicated disposal method for incontinence products such as pads and pull ups.
Adding disposal bins for incontinence products to male public toilets helps men in your community to get out and about with confidence knowing there is somewhere to dispose of their incontinence products.
The City of Melbourne is the first Australian capital city to trial incontinence product disposal bins in male and all-gendered toilets in five council facilities, including libraries and recreation centres. Councillor Jamal Hakim said the trial will showcase a practical solution and facilitate much-needed conversations. “With the proper facilities to dispose of products, we hope those living with incontinence can continue getting out and about, and doing what they love when they’re here in the City of Melbourne,” he said.
Melbourne City Council are working hard to promote the message that the bins have been installed in the following locations around Melbourne:
- Library at the Dock, Docklands
- Melbourne City Library
- Melbourne Town Hall Public Toilets at 200 Collins Street (below ground level, see picture)
- North Melbourne Community Centre
- Kathleen Symes Library, Carlton.
We have also seen three of Australia’s major venues get on board with the campaign:
- The WACA Ground in Perth, WA, is the first stadium in Australia to install BINS4Blokes for sports and entertainment fans.
- The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre is the first major events and conference venue to join BINS4Blokes, installing permanent bins for disposal of incontinence products in eight of the male toilets in the centre.
- Chadstone the Fashion Capital in Melbourne have installed incontinence product disposal bins in eleven of their male public toilets.
Bins4Blokes is a simple and cost-effective solution that will provide dignity and support to the one in ten men living with incontinence.
When incontinence product disposal bins are placed in public toilet facilities this can be added to The National Public Toilet Map (NPTM), which is another important resource for people when travelling or just planning outings locally.
The National Public Toilet Map provides:
- The location of the nearest public toilet
- Details of opening hours, accessibility, parking and many other features
- The ability to add and update public toilets and their facilities
- Specialty maps, with the ability to share maps
- Distance by route, which calculates and displays the travel distance to facilities. This considers one-way streets and access to buildings, whether on foot or in a car.