People on benefits will need to work longer hours
BLAMED ON TRANSPORTATION ISSUES AND A BACKLOG IN SUPPLY FROM CHINA DUE TO THE PANDEMIC
A HUDDERSFIELD swimming school has apologised after it was forced to shut its doors this weekend due a lack of chlorine.
Splashalot posted on Facebook on Friday: “I promise you, this isn’t an April fool... unfortunately, all lessons are cancelled this weekend, as the pool has run out of chlorine.”
Established in 2016, Splashalot Swim School teaches more than 500 swimmers from the age of three upwards in various locations in and around the Huddersfield area.
Chlorine is used in most swimming pools to kill germs and bacteria and thereby stop people from getting ill.
The shortages have been blamed on a backlog in supply from China because of Covid, worldwide transportation issues and a fire in a US chemical plant in late 2020. And the Russian war in Ukraine hasn’t helped either.
Splashalot boss Matt Pulford said: “I found out on Friday afternoon and had to send out 400 apologetic texts to customers immediately. I was not too pleased when the people from Edu-Lettings let me know what was happening – it’s the first time we have had to cancel because we have run out of chlorine.
“It’s massive for us because the weekend at King James’s School, Almondbury, is one of our busiest times.
“I understand there’s a meeting being organised for Monday to discuss the situation further. We hire two pools and managed to hold our usual Friday session at North Huddersfield Trust School as normal.
BENEFIT claimants will soon be required to work longer hours in order to be released from regular job centre appointments, the Work and Pensions Secretary has said.
Under the current rules, those claiming benefits do not have to continue attending appointments with job advisers once they are employed for the equivalent of nine hours a week.
However in an interview with
The Sunday Telegraph, Therese Coffey said the Government was set to increase that cut-off point, with the paper reporting it would be raised to 12 hours.
Ms Coffey said: “Once you get a job, if you’re working fewer than the equivalent of nine hours a week, we still expect you to be coming in and looking for work.
“We’re going to be raising that, I hope, very soon. We just want to help people get on into work. So that’s really important.”
She added the threshold could eventually be raised even further, but that would require the employment of more job advisers also known as work coaches.
“Well, we’re still working through that, I think there’s an opportunity to do more,” Ms Coffey said.
It’s a worry as the disruption meant I lost a lot of money... and the pupils missed their lessons Matt Pulford, Splashalot