AN INITIATIVE to provide toilets to the world’s poorest communities has left fundraisers flushed with success.

Members of Darlington and District Soroptimist club backed their president’s choice of adopted charity, Toilet Twinning, which works to improve bathroom provisions globally.

Dorothy Thomson chose to support the organisation throughout her presidential year and has been able to create 31 new toilets in Nepal and Uganda.

Many of the toilets have been twinned with individuals and organisations that supported fundraising efforts and Darlington Borough Council has joined the campaign and agreed to have a twinned toilet.

Darlington and District Soroptimist club president, Ms Thomson, said: “We believe Darlington Borough Council may well be the first council in the country to do this and we’re thrilled.

“Being able to raise enough money for 31 toilets was amazing and we chose Nepal and Uganda as we have members with links to those two countries.”

Leader of Darlington Borough Council, Councillor Bill Dixon, accepted framed photographs of two toilets in Nepal that will go on display in the Dolphin Centre.

He said: “The efforts of local members of Soroptimist International in raising funds for such a worthwhile project are to be commended and we’re delighted to accept their invitation to be twinned with these toilets.

“We hope it will help raise the profile of such projects that make such a huge difference to the communities they work in.”

For more information on Soroptimist International’s work, visit soroptistinternational.org or toilettwinning.org