Motorway Services Online

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Loo of the Year Awards

Every year the Loo of the Year Awards judge public toilets across the country.

Motorway service areas have played a major role in this, though different operators show different levels of interest each year.

There are also overall awards for the best motorway service area in England, Scotland and Wales, as well as the best roadside facility. The best roadside facility in Scotland is almost always The Green Welly Stop in Tyndrum.

Awards History

In 1992 Fleet was chosen as having the best public toilets overall.

More detailed awards for this period aren't available.

2005

The main entrant in 2005 was Moto. Almost all of the entrants received five star awards.

Service Area Operator Star Rating
Cherwell Valley Moto 5
Birchanger Green Welcome Break 5
Burton-in-Kendal Moto 5
Charnock Richard Welcome Break 5
Corley (forecourt) Welcome Break 5
Derby South Welcome Break 5
Donington Park Moto 5
Exeter Moto 5
Ferrybridge Moto 5
Fleet Welcome Break 5
Frankley Moto 5
Gordano Welcome Break 5
Grantham North Moto 5
Heston Moto 5
Hilton Park Moto 5
Hopwood Park Welcome Break 5
Knutsford Moto 5
Leicester Forest East Welcome Break 5
Leigh Delamere Moto 5
Oxford Welcome Break 5
Pease Pottage Moto 5
Scotch Corner Moto 5
South Mimms Welcome Break 5
Southwaite Moto 5
Tamworth Moto 5
Thurrock Moto 5
Toddington Moto 5
Trowell Moto 5
Washington Moto 5
Woodall southbound Welcome Break 5
Woolley Edge Moto 5
Corley (main building) Welcome Break 4

Cherwell Valley, Kinross and Swansea West came top in their respective nations.

Moto was chosen as the National UK Loo Of The Year award winner, placing them in the Hall of Fame. Moto and Welcome Break both won Standards of Excellence awards, and were members of the 100+ points club and the 50% club.

2006

A number of Moto and Welcome Break service areas took part in 2006.

Service Area Operator Star Rating
Birch eastbound Moto 5
Birchanger Green (forecourt) Welcome Break 5
Burton-in-Kendal Moto 5
Charnock Richard Welcome Break 5
Cherwell Valley Moto 5
Corley (forecourt) Welcome Break 5
Derby South Welcome Break 5
Doncaster (North) Moto 5
Gordano (main building) Welcome Break 5
Grantham North Moto 5
Hilton Park Moto 5
Heston Moto 5
Keele (main building) Welcome Break 5
Leicester Forest East Welcome Break 5
Telford Welcome Break 5
Thurrock Moto 5
Toddington Moto 5
Trowell Moto 5
Warwick northbound Welcome Break 5
Washington Moto 5
Woodall southbound (forecourt) Welcome Break 5
Woolley Edge Moto 5
Stirling Moto 4
Birch westbound Moto 4
Birchanger Green (main building) Welcome Break 4
Blyth Moto 4
Corley (main building) Welcome Break 4
Donington Park Moto 4
Exeter Moto 4
Ferrybridge Moto 4
Fleet (main building) Welcome Break 4
Gordano (forecourt) Welcome Break 4
Hartshead Moor Welcome Break 4
Keele (forecourt) Welcome Break 4
Knutsford Moto 4
Lancaster (Forton) Moto 4
Leicester Markfield Moto 4
Leigh Delamere Moto 4
London Gateway Welcome Break 4
Lymm Moto 4
Medway Moto 4
Membury Welcome Break 4
Michael Wood Welcome Break 4
Newport Pagnell Welcome Break 4
Oxford (main building) Welcome Break 4
Oxford (forecourt) Welcome Break 4
Pease Pottage Moto 4
Reading Moto 4
Sedgemoor northbound Welcome Break 4
Severn View Moto 4
Scotch Corner Moto 4
Southwaite Moto 4
South Mimms Welcome Break 4
Stafford northbound Moto 4
Tamworth Moto 4
Warwick southbound Welcome Break 4
Woodall southbound (main building) Welcome Break 4
Swansea West Moto 3
Abington Welcome Break 3
Fleet (forecourt) Welcome Break 3
Gretna Green Welcome Break 3

Frankley, Stirling and Swansea West came top in their respective nations. Hartshead Moor westbound was praised for having the best baby change facilities in the UK.

Moto also won a Standards of Excellence award, came top in the Corporate Provider category and, in an unrelated competition, won the Tommy's Parent Friendly Loo Award. Welcome Break also won a Standards of Excellence award.

2007

Welcome Break were the main entrant in 2007.

Service Area Operator Star Rating
South Mimms Welcome Break 5
Birchanger Green (forecourt) Welcome Break 5
Derby South westbound Welcome Break 5
Hartshead Moor Welcome Break 5
Hopwood Park (main building) Welcome Break 5
Hopwood Park (forecourt) Welcome Break 5
Gordano (main building) Welcome Break 5
Keele (main building) Welcome Break 5
Leicester Forest East northbound Welcome Break 5
London Gateway Welcome Break 5
Michael Wood Welcome Break 5
Newport Pagnell Welcome Break 5
Sedgemoor northbound Welcome Break 5
Telford Welcome Break 5
Warwick northbound Welcome Break 5
Woodall (main building) Welcome Break 5
Birchanger Green (main building) Welcome Break 4
Charnock Richard Welcome Break 4
Derby South eastbound Welcome Break 4
Fleet (main building) Welcome Break 4
Gordano (forecourt) Welcome Break 4
Keele (forecourt) Welcome Break 4
Leicester Forest East southbound Welcome Break 4
Membury westbound Welcome Break 4
Oxford (main building) Welcome Break 4
Stafford northbound Moto 4
Warwick southbound Welcome Break 4
Woodall (forecourt) Welcome Break 4
Abington Welcome Break 3
Fleet (forecourt) Welcome Break 3
Gretna Green Welcome Break 3
Membury eastbound Welcome Break 3
Oxford (forecourt) Welcome Break 3

Hartshead Moor was again praised for having the best baby changing facilities in the UK; it was described as "spotlessly clean".

South Mimms came top in the English motorway service areas category. There were no suitable entrants from the other two nations.

2008

Welcome Break were again the main entrant in 2008. It was mostly five star awards all round.

Service Area Operator Star Rating
Oxford Welcome Break 5
Abington Welcome Break 5
Cardiff Gate Welcome Break 5
Burtonwood Welcome Break 5
Charnock Richard southbound Welcome Break 5
Corley westbound Welcome Break 5
Derby South westbound Welcome Break 5
Gordano Welcome Break 5
Gretna Green Welcome Break 5
Hartshead Moor Welcome Break 5
Hopwood Park Welcome Break 5
Keele Welcome Break 5
Lancaster (Forton) Moto 5
Leicester Forest East Welcome Break 5
London Gateway Welcome Break 5
Michael Wood Welcome Break 5
Sedgemoor northbound Welcome Break 5
South Mimms Welcome Break 5
Telford Welcome Break 5
Warwick Welcome Break 5
Woodall Welcome Break 5
Fleet Welcome Break 4

Oxford, Abington and Cardiff Gate came top in their respective nations. Sedgemoor northbound was praised for its "age-friendly" facilities.

The J.38 Truckstop came top in the English roadside facilities category and Welcome Break won a Standards of Excellence award.

2009

Tebay won a five star award and came top in the English motorway service area category. No other awards were recorded.

2010

Interest was still low for the 2010 awards.

Service Area Operator Star Rating
Baldock Extra 5
Folkestone Stop 24 5
Lancaster (Forton) Moto 5
Tebay southbound Westmorland 5

2011

Tebay northbound won a five star award in 2011. Kettering westbound came top in the English roadside facilities category.

2012

The awarding system changed from stars to metals in 2012.

Service Area Operator Rating
Cherwell Valley Moto platinum
Baldock Extra platinum
Peterborough Extra platinum
Wetherby Moto platinum
Beaconsfield Extra gold
Blackburn with Darwen Extra gold
Cullompton Extra gold

Cherwell Valley came top in the English motorway service areas category.

2013

The results were very similar for 2013.

Service Area Operator Rating
Cambridge Extra platinum
Baldock Extra platinum
Cherwell Valley Moto platinum
Cullompton Extra platinum
Wetherby Moto platinum
Blackburn with Darwen Extra gold
Peterborough Extra gold

Cambridge came top in the English roadside facilities category.

2014

Extra were again the main entrant in 2014.

Service Area Operator Rating
Beaconsfield Extra platinum
Baldock Extra platinum
Cherwell Valley Moto platinum
Cobham Extra platinum
Cullompton Extra platinum
Peterborough Extra platinum
Wetherby Moto platinum
Blackburn with Darwen Extra gold

Beaconsfield came top in the English motorway service areas category.

2015

Cherwell Valley came top in the English motorway service areas category.

2019

After a few years with no interest at all, in 2019 Extra won an award for all their service areas.

2020

Extra once again came top in the overall transport category. They were also placed in the Champions League category, for consistently high standards. Their Leeds Skelton Lake came top in the 'English motorway service areas' category.

2021

Oxford, Sarn Park and Annandale Water won best motorway service area for their respective nations. No individual operator awards were received.

2022

Operators were keen to take part in 2022.

Service Area Operator Rating
Rugby Moto platinum
Annandale Water Roadchef platinum
Sarn Park Welcome Break platinum
Birchanger Green Welcome Break platinum
Corley Welcome Break platinum
Keele southbound Welcome Break platinum
Leicester Forest East southbound Welcome Break platinum
Norton Canes Roadchef platinum
Oxford Welcome Break platinum
Strensham northbound Roadchef platinum
Tibshelf Roadchef platinum
Warwick Welcome Break platinum
Woodall southbound Welcome Break platinum
Rothwell Truckstop Welcome Break gold
Hopwood Park Welcome Break gold
Northampton Roadchef gold
Rownhams Roadchef gold

Rugby and Annandale Water came top in the motorway service areas category. Rothwell truckstop came top in the English roadside service area category, while "Sarn services" came top in the Welsh car parks category.

2023

There were a variety of entrants in 2023, and a big accolade, as Killington Lake came top in the entire 'public toilets' category.

Service Area Operator Rating
Killington Lake Roadchef unknown
South Mimms Welcome Break unknown
Rugby Moto platinum plus
Donington Moto platinum plus
Warwick Welcome Break platinum
Sarn Park Welcome Break unknown

South Mimms came top in the English motorway service areas category (Killington Lake, confusingly, was classed as a "roadside facility"); Sarn Park came top in the Welsh motorway service areas category. Extra won a Standards of Excellence Award.

Links

Loo of the Year Awards website