A South London swimming pool has reopened today (March 2) following a four-month closure. The eight-lane, 25m pool inside Canada Water Leisure Centre had only been open for six weeks when it was forced to close on October 13 due to a maintenance issue.
A learner pool with a moveable floor which is located next door remained open as normal. Southwark Council said it found “unexpected problems” within the building, including a fault with the system that controls temperature and air quality around the pool. The council said it worked with the original contractors to fix the problems to ensure the centre now meets “the high standards our community expects”.
Cllr Richard Leeming, Deputy Cabinet Member for Leisure and Sports at Southwark Council, said: “We recognise the frustration residents will have felt during the temporary closure and we are grateful for the patience and understanding shown by our swimming community.
“Swimming is such an important life skill, and we are proud to support residents from as young as four months old in building confidence in the water. Beyond that, our pools provide huge benefits for leisure, fitness and rehabilitation, supporting health and wellbeing across our borough.”
Cllr Leeming added: “We are incredibly excited to reopen the main pool and to welcome back our schools, swimming clubs, families and regular swimmers to enjoy everything this fantastic facility has to offer.”
A not-for-profit swimming club previously revealed to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that it was losing around £500 in revenue per month because of the closure. Southwark Aquatics Swimming Club (SASC) saw some members leaving while others were only paying half of the usual fees as the club could only offer half the programme.
Andy Moore, Chairman of SASC, said the club had lost around 10 per cent of its members, while some struggled to travel to alternative venues which were located up to seven miles away.
The club is run by volunteers and parents who train swimmers of all abilities aged eight to 15, and members have gone on to successfully compete at county, regional and national levels.
Reacting to the reopening of the pool, Andy said: “I’m just pleased to see the pool is reopening. It has been a tough time for Southwark Council, our club, and all users of the pool. The council offered support as best it could during the outage, and for that we are grateful. Our club members are over the moon that the months of turmoil they endured travelling to alternate pools are at an end and that training will return to normal.”
He added: “Now though, we must look forward; I hope that our club will bounce back and that swimmers who left us will return.”
Before moving into the Canada Water Leisure Centre, SASC was based at the Seven Islands Leisure Centre for many years. Seven Islands had been in the area since 1965 but it closed to make way for Canada Water Leisure Centre and the boarded up building is now covered in graffiti.
The new leisure centre is part of the multi-billion-pound Canada Water Masterplan from British Land and AustralianSuper which is in partnership with Southwark Council and spans a 53-acre site.
The centre also features a four-court sports hall, a ‘world-class’ gym with a dedicated functional fitness area and three group exercise studios.
