There will be plenty of reading material available for people visiting the smallest room in Coventry city centre if plans to turn the library into a lavatory go ahead.

The information centre on the ground floor of the Central Library in Smithford Way is being considered as one of the possible sites for the new toilets.

Coventry City Council leader Nick Nolan pledged to make public toilets a key priority when he took office last month.

The previous privvies in the Precinct were closed off after it was revealed that they were in too poor a state to renovate.

Since then shoppers wanting to spend just a penny have had to make do with a portaloo by the service yard to the Barracks car park.

Now council officers have been instructed to hunt out the best possible place to put the new facilities.

Plans could involve putting the toilets behind the ground floor information centre in the library, with people having to bundle past rows of leaflet racks to seek relief.

And library staff are said to be up in arms at the prospect of being inconvenienced by hoards of desperate people trampling through to the toilet.

Head of Land and Property Mick Sanders said the information centre was one site being looked at.

He said he was unable to reveal the location of the other council-owned buildings that were being looked at, but a list of recommendations would go to cabinet level in a month.

He said:

“The council owns most of the city centre. The remit is to try and find possible locations for the provision of replacement public toilets.”