‘acceptabLe swiMwear poLicy’

Ashford Leisure Trust, which manages the Stour Centre, said the item breached its policy because the centre “was not advised by the boy’s father of any reason as to why the child needed to wear the T-shirt”.

A spokesman said: “Ashford Leisure Trust takes the safety of their swimmers very seriously and with this in mind continually reviews the acceptable swimwear policy which is in line with industry guidelines. The policy is available to view on our website.

“Swimwear should be designed for use in a swimming pool, of suitable material, hygienic and safe and unlikely to be a risk to either the user or others.

“The only exception to this is for either medical or religious reasons and this must be brought to the duty manager’s attention prior to entering the pool.

“In this instance the duty manager was not advised by the boy’s father of any reason as to why the child needed to wear the T-shirt and was therefore asked not to wear the top. Should there have been any valid reason then of course a swim top would have been permitted.”

This is not the first time the Stour Centre has been hit with controversy.

In 2013, a grandmother demanded an apology after her daughter was told to stop breastfeeding in the swimming pool.

Sophie Howes, 27, said she was sitting on steps leading to the learner pool feeding her eight-monthold daughter Connie when a member of staff said her actions were offensive and asked her to move to another area.

Sophie’s mother Virginia Howes, 54, accused the trust of discriminating against her daughter for breastfeeding in public.

Last year, Ms Howes received an undisclosed payout from the trust in an out-of-court settlement.