Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Swimming pools in line for £60m funding boost
Ten Kent leisure centres to benefit from windfall
Ten Kent swimming pools are to receive a share of a £60 million handout from the government and Sport England to make them more energy efficient.
Money from the Swimming
Pool Fund will assist centres in
Maidstone, Cranbrook, Larkfield, Tenterden, Swanley,
Whitstable, Hoo, Faversham,
Folkestone and Gravesend.
The grants are aimed at keeping running costs down. ough.
It comes as a number of Kent’s Maidstone council has agreed pool bosses last year said they long-term plans to replace it were at risk of closure over with a new £60m complex. spiralling energy bills. Larkfield Leisure Centre is to Maidstone Leisure Centre receive £405,039 for new photo will get £516,000 to assist with voltaic panels and LED lighting. heat recovery and replace old boilers on its 50-year-old building, The Weald Sports Centre in describbridegdehaa s vetnhceorem- Koesntisph ogalz-ettechraalf npabger.opdofk1 is 06i/n03/l2i0n2 e4 f1o2r:30£:3970,000 luting building in the bor- for new pool covers and new
LED lighting.
The White Oak Leisure Centre in Swanley is to receive £612,950 towards the installation of solar voltaic panels. The Whitstable pool will get £85,392 to help install additional metering and monitoring software. Tenterden pool gets £22,100 to triple glaze its pool windows. Hoo Sports Centre, near Rochester, will receive £744,379 for solar panels and new gas boilers.
Faversham pool gets £227,500 to put in heat recovery units and variable speed fans. Cllr Richard Palmer, chairman of Swale Borough Council’s community committee, said: “We know that this pool is loved by the community, it is a place for children to have fun exercise and socialize and offers a space for people to keep fit. So, we are grateful for this
funding, which will enable us to make major energy saving improvements to the Faversham pool facility.
“The new heating system will help the Pools offset significant increases in its energy costs. “Of course, we would have loved to get funding for our other pool facilities, but the demand for the funding far outstripped the funding available. “We will keep the bid information we used for the other
pools in case future funding opportunities become available.”
Michael Ellsmore, joint chair of Faversham Pools board of trustees, added: “We are very pleased to have been successful in being granted this funding. “It builds on our success in improving the infrastructure of the Pools, and I am also grateful to everyone involved in preparing the funding bid. “Whilst the funding significantly
helps us, we continue to face challenges in covering our operating costs.” Meanwhile, Folkestone Sports Centre will get £106,380 for variable speed pumps and fans.
And finally, the Cygnet Leisure Centre in Gravesend will get £173,250 towards pool covers and heat recovery units. They are among 325 centres nationwide which are sharing a pot of £60.5m.