Fears for future of school swimming lessons amid pool closure plans

Children attending schools in Skelmersdale and Ormskirk could miss out on potentially life-saving swimming lessons if their local leisure centres are forced to close. Proposals to shut down the Nye Bevan and Park Pool were put forward last month as West Lancashire Borough Council says "tough decisions must be made".

The plans form part of a wider review to secure the financial future of the council after its funding was cut by 92%. The two leisure centres, which have stood for more than 50 years, could be replaced by new "wellbeing and leisure hubs" with above-ground swimming pools.

But it is feared that, in the meantime, local schoolchildren will be affected as their usual swimming lessons face disruption. Adam Edwards, a PE teacher at Delph Side Primary School, which uses the Nye Bevan pool every week, said: "Every school in Skelmersdale uses that pool for swimming lessons. It takes our pupils 15 minutes to walk there and spend 40 minutes in the pool leaning life skills and water safety.

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"By the end of Y6, the national curriculum states all children should be able to swim 25m. From March, when the pool closes, we will have nowhere in West Lancashire to follow the national curriculum. Our means to fulfil that is being taken away. We have been calling other leisure centres, but I don't know where else we could possibly go because everywhere else is full."

He said the school had already reached out to leisure centres in Wigan, Maghull and Ormskirk - but had so far been unable to secure a new place as these were all being used by other schools.

A period of consultation into the proposed closure of the Nye Bevan and Park pools is currently underway. Children at Delph Side wrote letters in support of the facilities remaining open, and these were presented to West Lancashire Council planners on Friday, November 17.

Adam said: "Since the consultation began it has been about people having their say, and unfortunately when it comes to that, the only people having their say are the adults. But from Monday to Friday, nine to five, it's children who are using it. When you come into school it's a conversation on the playground, so we thought we needed to give them a voice.

"As a school we ran a lesson on the Nye Bevan and Park pools and looked at it from both sides. They came together as a class and wrote to the council to express their disappointment and why they need a pool. They are really passionate about it. They are the ones using the pool Monday to Friday, and they're the ones who need it most."

He added: "The pupils at my school are my biggest concern. I've voiced my concerns not only for the school but for the area. There seems to be a lot taken away from Skelmersdale and not much put back in. Our sports centre was taken away 10 years ago. The council put these pretty pictures up about what we could have, but it's never anything definite.

"Our pupils love the pool, it's what they look forward to, it's where they go during the holidays. You can argue the point about why we should have these facilities, but they're only being taken away. It baffles me, to be honest.

"We're at a bit of a loss and I'm at a point where, in March, I may have to stand up to the council and say I can't provide a national curriculum to my pupils because we simply haven't been given anywhere to go, and the facilities outside of the area are full."

West Lancashire Borough Council was approached for comment.