Swimming pool funding: 325 venues share £60m

A total of 325 swimming pools and leisure centres in England have received grants from Phase II of the Swimming Pool Support Fund (SPSF).

The £60.5 million funding is aimed at helping facilities boost their energy efficiency and keep running costs down.

Grants handed out during Phase II ranged in size from £3,000 to nearly £1m and have funded projects such as installing solar panels, pool covers, LED lighting and improving insulation.

With the increase in energy costs over recent years, the Government announced the fund a year ago (in 2023), with the intention of both helping keep pools open in the face of financial challenges, as well as funding longer-term projects to help reduce future energy bills.

Successful applicants needed to outline why their planned interventions were both appropriate and deliverable, while other criteria included an assessment of the expected energy saving, distance from other pools and the strategic importance of each site at a local level. Examples of the successful applications include that of The Pulse leisure centre in Gloucestershire, which received £300,000 to remodel its changing areas and install an air-handling unit to improve energy efficiency. Elsewhere, South Woodham Ferrers Leisure Centre in Chelmsford received £233,000 for a new gas boiler.

Lisa Dodd-Mayne, Sport England’s Executive Director of Place, said: “Many pools have faced a real threat to their survival as they battle the challenge of increased energy and wider costs, weakened reserves and difficulties with retaining staff.”