Panel to decide on future of Haslingden swimming pool

6:30pm Thursday 30th August 2012 in News

CONSULTATION Haslingden Swimming Pool CONSULTATION Haslingden Swimming Pool

A TROUBLED East Lancashire swimming centre is to have its future decided by a dedicated ‘pool panel’.

Haslingden Swimming Pool is in dire need of attention after Rossendale Council decided to pull the plug on a planned revamp last September in favour of regenerating Rawtenstall’s Valley Centre site.

The baths, in East Bank Avenue, now require a £1.5million boost to be brought up to scratch as they suffer from ‘concrete cancer’.

Now Rossendale Leisure Trust, which runs the venue, will work with the council and the swimming community to look at the pool’s long-term future.

Councillor Andrew McNae, portfolio holder for regeneration, tourism and leisure in the Valley, said the panel would explore every option to benefit the swimming community – including the possibility of asking social enterprise groups to help out.

He said: “The panel is currently getting to grips with all the information we have, to identify the options.

“Once these have been agreed they will be made subject of wider consultation within the borough. What we can’t do is nothing.

“We have to develop some kind of plan of action because the council faces massive cuts in funding.”

The pool panel is due to meet with members of the social enterprise scheme which took over Ski Rossendale last year to learn from their experience.

Michael McGrath, a campaigner for the pool, said the panel had already met twice and was also looking at the possibility of replicating the community pool in Whitworth.

He said: “It would be an absolute tragedy if the pool closed.

“It has iconic status – it would be like pulling down the tower in Blackpool.

“We’re hoping savings can be found in other areas. We directly asked Coun McNae if this panel was a box-ticking exercise and he gave us his word that it wasn’t, so we live in hope.”

The Haslingden pool currently costs £137,000 a year to keep open.

Comments(7)

mavrick says...
6:44pm Thu 30 Aug 12

Perhaps a lobby of parliament might help, After all the hype of the Olympics The government claims to be committed to encouraging sport. But this condem coalition are strangers to the truth, encourage sport in schools they said and then allowed the playing fields to be sold off. I would petition the M.P and see just where he stands. Sadly the people of Rossendale got what they voted for.

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her from here says...
7:30pm Thu 30 Aug 12

The money was spent on Rawtenstall center that was up to the council not parliament.They should be ashamed of themselves.

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Doug Spencer says...
8:07pm Thu 30 Aug 12

I think that the current leisure provision model should be very closely examined. CLAW, in Whitworth, run 2 facilities for the council and cost less than £60K per annum. Rossendale Leisure Trust operate 2 facilities and cost around £750K per year!!
Bacup Leisure Hall, according to the trust, was a loss making venture, Catherine Murphy took it on and, I assume, make a profit. Ski Rossendale again, according to the Trust, made losses, the social enterprise again, appears to be operating at a surplus.
I think that the problem with leisure provision in Rossendale, would be better either taken bac in house by Rossendale Council OR put out for tender to other community groups.
The common factor seems to be the trust has an still is failing.

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Eye On The Valley says...
10:19pm Thu 30 Aug 12

Mr McGrath, I hope you get to keep your pool, and that money can be found to make the improvements required, but I think Blackpool Tower might just outrank Haslingden Swimming Pool should a global iconic status poll be carried out.

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Bacupbloke says...
8:38am Fri 31 Aug 12

Doug Spencer was spot on. The trust was set up as a front so that the council could pretend to have an independent body handling leisure but it was fronted by a Labour councillor who was then forced to step down.
All the promises on the pool have failed miserably. McNae should resign his post. All these sacrifices for an unwanted car park.

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kateash says...
8:49am Fri 31 Aug 12

This is where I learnt to swim. Please please revamp it!! Dont pull it down!!

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spendmymoneywisely says...
3:48pm Fri 31 Aug 12

Mr Spencer has made some interesting and, I believe, valid points. Call me cynical but I suspect that the decision to involve the 'pool Panel' is just a cosmetic exercise. When one considers that the Council (including Mr McNae) completely ignored the massive petition and chose instead to use the money to knock down the Valley Centre it is very difficult to have faith in anything Councillors say these days. The idea of it becoming a community project like CLAW will, sadly, not work on this occassion as the Council has allowed the building & equipment to deteriorate and it would cost too much to bring it back up to scratch. Why doesn't it, as a sign of good faith, offer to bring it back to good condition first before trying to palm it off onto outside agencies or to a panel of local citizens?. If only we could have local Parish Councils like Whitworth we could have greater control on what happens in our immediate neighbourhoods and ensure that our Council Tax was spent for the benefit of everyone not just Rawtenstall.

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