Bristol company Piquel launches female urinals for festivals
Bristol-based company Piquel has introduced female urinals designed to reduce queue times at festivals, aiming to improve convenience for women.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
A Bristol-based company has launched female urinals designed to cut down the time women spend queuing for toilets at festivals. The product, called Piquel, aims to tackle what researchers have dubbed the "Female Festival Fun Tax", the disproportionate amount of time female attendees lose waiting for the loo compared to men.
According to a university study, women waste an average of one hour per day at festivals waiting for toilets, while men typically wait just five minutes. Across the summer, this adds up to an estimated 10 million hours lost by women. The urinals, which have already been used at events including Glastonbury and Love Saves the Day, are said to be three times quicker than standard portable toilets.
The design is simple: users flip a sign to show the cubicle is busy, then squat over a pedestal with footprints to guide their feet and a handle for balance. The co-founder of Piquel, Amber Probin, said the idea came from her own research as a student into the time women spend queuing. She said the product can get women "out of those time-wasting queues and back to the events they've paid for."
Social psychology expert Dr Anna Yiprossa from the University of Bath said the issue has often been overlooked by event organisers, who tend to design for a "particular prototypical festival attendee." She noted that the industry is moving towards better solutions, including squatting toilets, compost toilets, and gender-neutral options.
The Association of Independent Festivals, which represents more than 150 events, said improving toilet facilities is a priority. A spokesperson said: "We certainly don't want people to be in queues, missing out on food or drink, or going to see the bands that they want to go and see, so anything to kind of make that speedier is a good thing."
The report also highlighted that festival-goers are often willing to try new things, and that female urinals are now appearing at other types of events, such as half-marathons. As organisers become more mindful of everyone's needs, the "female festival fun tax" may be drastically reduced.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | ITV |
|---|---|
| Piquel urinals are three times faster than standard larger toilets. | |
| The total time lost by women at festivals this summer is estimated at 10 million hours. | |
| Women queue for an average of one hour per day at festivals, compared to five minutes for men. |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The report focuses on the practical problem of long queues for women at festivals and presents Piquel as a solution. It includes a strong human-interest element with vox pops from festival-goers and a detailed demonstration of the product. The tone is supportive of the innovation, framing it as a way to cut the 'Female Festival Fun Tax' and backed by academic research.
- “The thing is, when you're paying so much money for a festival ticket, you do not want to spend the majority, if not all, of your time queueing for a pee.”
- “Women are wasting, on average, one hour per day at festivals and events in the queues for the toilet. This is staggering, as it clocks up to roughly around 10 million hours.”
- “We certainly don't want people to be in queues, missing out on food or drink, or going to see the bands that they want to go and see, so anything to kind of make that speedier is a good thing.”
Broadcast Timeline
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