The Brockwell Park Lido Midwinter Swim on 19th December 2009 will be helping to
raise funds for a cycle charity that helps disabled cyclists in London: WHEELS
FOR WELLBEING

http://www.communitynewswire.press.net/article.jsp?id=6371662

If anyone would like to support Wheels for Wellbeing without jumping into cold
water you can do so by logging onto a Justgiving Page:

http://www.justgiving.com/Brockwell-Lido-Midwinter-Swim

Well done to all those who will be taking part on Saturday 19th December

Brockwell Park Lido is run by FUSION and is supported by a very dedicated
Friends group: BLU  (Brockwell Lido Users)

The Broomhill Pool Trust have taken out a full page Letter advertisement
appealing directly to the Executive of Ipswich Borough Council, ahead of
tomorrow's Executive council meeting on 15th December 2009

The advertisment appears in the local (Ipswich) Evening Star today (14th
December 2009) and is headed:

BROOMHILL POOL CAN BE SAVED - QUALITY OPERATORS HAVE EXPRESSED INTEREST

http://www.swimclub.co.uk/forum/showpost.php?p=214339&postcount=588

The text of the Letter is also on the Broomhill Pool website under Latest News 
www.savebroomhillpool.org

The Letter is a sign of the Trust's frustration with the Council's determination
to constantly present a slanted view of the current situation : eg Cllr Judy
Terry is now claiming that Sport England's Facility Planning Model suggests that
there is sufficient water space (swimming pools)in Ipswich. This "sufficiency"
has been achieved by combining private pools as well as public pools together:
eg the Council are counting in pools in private health clubs, school pools etc.

And yet, when the Council were exploring the possibility of building a new 50
metre pool, they commissioned consultants Torkildsen Barclay who showed there
was under provision of public water space. Their Swimming Needs Assessment was
produced in 2006 and established that the under provision was going to worsen as
Ipswich grew and expanded.

The Council's trick is to omit the word "public" from the phrase "water space":
when they want to build a new pool there's under provision, when they want to
withdraw their offer of a million pounds worth of funding for the Broomhill
Lido, then they rope the private pools into their calculations to show that
Ipswich has enough.

Ipswich Borough Council have also been implying that the Broomhill Pool Trust
have failed because they haven't raised all the money needed for the
restoration, but the original aim was to establish a robust future for the pool
not to match-fund the million quid.

The Heritage Lottery Fund bid for £2 million for the lido would have stood a
much better chance of success if the Council hadn't simultaneously put in their
own bid for Holywells Park: this demonstrated to the HLF that the Council were
not truly committed to the lido's restoration and a spokesman for the HLF
actually appeared on BBC Look East to say that the council's offer of a million
pounds had been promised but not secured.

Tomorrow the Executive will meet and one of the recommendations in their
Broomhill Report is that the offer of a million pounds should be withdrawn - it
looks as if the fears expressed by the HLF were all too accurate.

I have just logged onto the Ipswich Borough Council website to check the
Executive Meeting for 15th December 2009 and discovered that the Agenda and
Reports have already been "archived", even though the meeting is still six days
away.

The council's reason is that the "Recent Meetings" slot can hold details of only
ten meetings, but why is it necessary to advertise a forum taking place on 31st
March 2010 rather than the Executive Meeting next Tuesday??

http://www.ipswich.gov.uk/site/scripts/meetings_index.php

This seems just too convenient an excuse: the word "archive" should mean a
storage place for events that have already taken place: whereas the council
appear to be using the archive to try and make an unpopular report less visible.

The Agenda and Reports are still on line, but you have to scroll down to the
word "Executive" in the archives to access info for 15th December 2009 and today
is only 9th December 2009

The Executive of Ipswich Borough Council will meet on December 15th 2009 to
consider an "all options report" on Broomhill Pool and vote on the
recommendation to remove the £1 million pledge towards the lido's restoration
from the Capital Budget.

The exact wording reads:

"That Executive note that the Borough Council offer of £1 million to support the
BHT efforts to refurbish the pool expire on 31st December 2009 and that any
future application for support would be subject to the usual budget setting
procedures.

Reason: The Council has financial pressures on both capital and revenue and as
part of the medium term plan needs to consider this project either as part of it
or remove it.

"Financial pressures" haven't prevented the council from wanting to fund their
own preferred heritage project - a four million pound plan for Holywells Park.
Two million pounds was voted through for Holywells Park in 2008 when the Council
were preparing a HLF bid, so as to demonstrate their commitment to the Park
project.

Broomhill Pool did not receive the same level of commitment from the Council and
the Heritage Lottery Fund spokesman actually said on BBC Look East that the pool
bid had failed because they needed to see more commitment from the council. The
one million pounds had been promised but not secured.

Recent events have proved that the HLF were right to doubt the Council's million
pound offer.

http://www.ipswich.gov.uk/site/scripts/meetings_info.php?meetingID=216

I just heard that the iconic 60ft (18.2m) sea diving boards next to Tinside
Lido on the Hoe at Plymouth are to be removed at a cost of £24K. See BBC
News http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/devon/8335497.stm

For the planning approval, see http://tinyurl.com/yccc89c

Although closed for 6 years these boards have been regularly used by kids in
wetsuits, see
http://www.flickr.com/photos/adamclutterbuck/3058437897/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/danb1203/3794186123/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28924985@N04/2920861427/
and on YouTube.

Injuries sustained were often treated by the lifeguards at the Lido, I
understand. Removing the boards will stop these, but will only move the
problem along the foreshore to other popular sites, I guess.

Oliver

The Outdoor Swimming Society enjoyed a very successful winter plunge fundraising
event at Parliament Hill Lido:

The Independent on Sunday coverage (6th December 2009) is here:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/you-dont-have-to-be-mad-to-swi\
m-here-1835049.html

Good news about Kingsbury Pool: Warwickshire County Council have published a
statement dated 2nd December 2009 saying they will now fund the pool for another
year AND set up a steering group to look into the pool's long term future.

The Kingsbury Pool was on the agenda of a Cabinet meeting for 17th December
2009, with a vote for closure anticipated.

This pool is used by nine schools and several other user groups including the
top class Kingsbury Aquarius Swimming Club, so this is good news for literally
hundreds of people.

The Warwickshire County Council website says:

"I am pleased to confirm that we have managed to find the funding to keep it
open for another year while a steering group looks at ways to keep it open in
the longer-term for future generations to enjoy."
Cllr Alan Farnell, Leader of Warwickshire County Council

Warwickshire County Council has saved the immediate future of Kingsbury Pool by
agreeing to fund it for a further year.

The county council, in partnership with the parish council, originally took over
the management of the pool 13 years ago when the school could no longer afford
to keep it open.

Due to impending budget reductions, the authority has been examining alternative
ways in which it could keep the swimming pool open for the community to continue
to enjoy.

But at last week's (November 25th) Area Committee meeting, an eleventh hour
proposal from the county council was put forward to fund the running costs of
the swimming pool for a further year from April 2010.

The proposal was approved by the committee and a special steering group has now
been tasked with finding a long-term solution to the pool's funding.

Cllr Alan Farnell, Leader of Warwickshire County Council, said: "We have
listened to the feelings of the community and appreciate how much the pool means
to them.

"I am pleased to confirm that we have managed to find the funding to keep it
open for another year while a steering group looks at ways to keep it open in
the longer-term for future generations to enjoy."

I notice that Beccles is not on any list.  We are at present working on
clearing the site and are hopeful of re-opening next year. Maureen Saunders

-----Original Message-----
From: poolingresources@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:poolingresources@yahoogroups.com]On Behalf Of Oliver Merrington
Sent: 01 December 2009 16:39
To: Lidos Yahoo-Group; Pooling Resources
Subject: [poolingresources] Lidos on Wikipedia


Hello all,

Mainly due to sterling effort by a friend of mine in South London, a large
number of historic or important lidos are now included in the English
Wikipedia. I have made a list of them here
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/oliver.merrington/lidos/wikipedia.htm
- with more to follow.

Many other outdoor swimming pools are mentioned within Wikipedia, mostly on
the article about the particular village or town. Examples are Aldershot,
Brightlingsea, Chesham, Chudleigh, Cottenham, Gillingham, Haltwhistle,
Ivybridge and Penzance - there may be others.

If you are interested in this project, especially if you have experience in
editing Wikipedia, and would like to help, please contact me privately.

Oliver
www.lidos.org.uk



------------------------------------

Yahoo! Groups Links



No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 9.0.709 / Virus Database: 270.14.88/2538 - Release Date: 12/01/09
07:59:00

Hello all,

Mainly due to sterling effort by a friend of mine in South London, a large
number of historic or important lidos are now included in the English
Wikipedia. I have made a list of them here
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/oliver.merrington/lidos/wikipedia.htm
- with more to follow.

Many other outdoor swimming pools are mentioned within Wikipedia, mostly on
the article about the particular village or town. Examples are Aldershot,
Brightlingsea, Chesham, Chudleigh, Cottenham, Gillingham, Haltwhistle,
Ivybridge and Penzance - there may be others.

If you are interested in this project, especially if you have experience in
editing Wikipedia, and would like to help, please contact me privately.

Oliver
www.lidos.org.uk

Beccles Lido Ltd have obtained permission from Waveney District Council to start
work on the pool area - clearing and tidying it. A local skip hire firm is
supplying skips free of charge to show their support for the work BLL is doing:-

http://www.becclesandbungayjournal.co.uk/content/bbjournal/news/story.aspx?brand\
=BBJOnline&category=NEWS&tBrand=BBJOnline&tCategory=news&itemid=NOED26%20Nov%202\
009%2016%3A32%3A51%3A540

Tonight on BBC2 at 9.50pm there is a programme called
Wonderland Virgin Swimmers:-

Nine adults take part in a six-week course to learn how to swim.

Article today in The Times (26th November 2009) about learning to swim as an
adult; (lessons took place in the London Fields Lido, which is open all the year
round):-

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/diet_and_fitness/article\
6931691.ece

Comments can be added.

The Paisley Daily Express has printed a number of articles highlighting the JESS
Campaign for the Johnstone and Elderslie pools:

This is one of them from October 2009
http://www.paisleydailyexpress.co.uk/renfrewshire-news/local-news-in-renfrewshir\
e/linwood-news/2009/10/07/support-floods-in-to-save-pools-87085-24866242/

Apologies for the spelling mistake: the JESS campaign is for the swimming pools
in Johnstone and Elderslie (not Johnston as in the first message)

Back in June this year (2009)Renfrewshire Council announced a £92 million
investment package in schools and sports and leisure facilities.

http://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/ilwwcm/publishing.nsf/Content/ce-jl-92MBoostforSc\
hoolsSportsLeisure

The Council regarded this as good news for all, but at least two of the
communities affected are distinctly unhappy because they will lose their local
pools in their current form: these are the swimming pools in Johnston and
Elderslie.

A campaign group (JESS) has been set up to protest about these changes imposed
from above and a website has recently been established too:
http://www.jess-campaign.org.uk/


The October Newsletter in pdf form can be read here:
http://www.jess-campaign.org.uk/newsletters.htmL

There is also a campaign thread on Swimclub:
http://www.swimclub.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=13327

The Birmingham Mail has continued the story with this article dated 13th
November 2009:

http://www.birminghammail.net/news/staffordshire-news/2009/11/13/tamworth-school\
-pool-faces-closure-if-funding-bid-fails-97319-25155729/

I have also started a thread on Swimclub (apologies, because the title of the
thread wrongly places Tamworth in Warwickshire instead of Staffordshire):

http://www.swimclub.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=13311

Kingsbury Parish Council is very upset that they might lose the pool as it is a
really valued asset to the whole community.

The worst aspect of these kind of closures is that the money "saved" by the
Council is minimal, on the scale of their finances, but the impact on the 500
children that use it and the other user groups will be considerable. Schools are
not given any budgetary help to run their own pools so they are reliant on the
County Council to treat them fairly.

As stated in the first message, councillors find no funding difficulties when
considering their own financial advancement;  on top of their Basic Allowance
and any SRA's there are their expenses too. These include the right to buy
senior railcards at taxpayers expense and the right to upgrade to First Class if
there are no seats in Standard. Senior railcard holders can additionally upgrade
to First Class provided this isn't more than the Standard Class fare without a
railcard!  So......First Class treatment for themselves and very shoddy
treatment for approx 500 schoolchildren.

The season of goodwill (Christmas and New Year) is usually a bad time for
swimming pools, because Councils are sharpening their pens for budget cuts in
the next financial year.

One of the latest pools under threat is the Kingsbury Swimming Pool. This pool
is in the grounds of Kingsbury School but operated by Warwickshire County
Council. The Cabinet of this council are meeting on 17th December 2009 to look
at the continuation or closure of the pool, but the scheduled date of
publication of their decision is 20th December.

Closure of the Kingsbury Pool would affect nine schools and a whole range of
groups, including the Kingsbury Aquarius Swimming Club The headmaster of
Kingsbury School is therefore aghast at the Council's stated intent to remove
all funding:

This is the link to a This is Tamworth article printed back in October:

http://www.thisistamworth.co.uk/news/Calls-save-Kingsbury-swimming-pool/article-\
1444033-detail/article.html

WCC have shown no such reluctance when considering allowances for themselves:
there was a meeting on September 8th 2009 to vote through increases of up to 15%
in their SRA's (Special Responsibility Allowances).  The Taxpayers Alliance
website flagged up this meeting.
http://www.taxpayersalliance.com/westmidlands/2009/09/warwickshire-county-counci\
l-vote-on-allowance-rise.html

There is a post on Swimclub about a survey the ASA are doing. Although the
survey assumes you are a member of the ASA there does not appear to be any
restrictions on non-members contributing to the research.

Allow about 10 minutes to fill it in thoroughly. It does invite feedback from
divers too, John!

http://www.swimclub.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?p=210373#post210373

The South London Swimming Club has donated a huge net to the Tooting Bec Lido,
to help with trawling up autumn leaves and to keep the pool as clear as possible
during the autumn/winter season:


http://www.wandsworthguardian.co.uk/news/4725127.Tooting_swimmers_net_great_gift\
_to_combat_falling_autumn_leaves/

Have just heard the good news that my daughter has just had a baby girl safely
delivered - so... the next generation of campaigners is underway!

Hopefully though, this child will be able to swim in Broomhill Pool rather than
write letters about it!

Quite an interesting blog post here on what can happen when a council decides to
outsource its leisure facilities to two different operators. Lambeth Council use
GLL and Fusion:-

http://onionbagblog.com/2009/10/31/the-great-lambeth-swimming-swindle/

Here is a copy of the Press Release sent out by the Black Isle campaign group:

SWIMMING POOL GROUP MAKE LAST DITCH PLEA TO COUNCIL


A  community group leading the campaign for a swimming pool in the Black Isle
have asked Highland Council to give an assurance that they will provide the
annual revenue support needed to unlock a  Big Lottery grant of up to £1M
towards the total capital costs of £2.7M.

The urgent request has been made in a letter to Hugh Fraser, Director of
Education, Leisure and Sport. In the letter, Stuart Edmond, Chairman of Black
Isle Swimming Pool Foundation, says:
  "In a very recent discussion with our Big Lottery Case Officer, it was made
very clear (once again) that our application was likely to fail for want of a
firm commitment from the Council to give revenue funding. This was despite our
application and plan being regarded as "a really good project with a sound
business plan, demonstrated need and realistic projections of usage and income".
The business plan shows that the pool would need revenue support of some £65K a
year.

Mr Edmond said:" We warned that the Council's decision in November 2008 not to
back the pool, and only to look at it again if other funders came in first with
capital and  Council support was the "the last element", would, in effect, doom
our project to failure. This has verbally been confirmed again, and is contrary
to what the Council said in a letter in June 2009 to Mr Dave Thompson MSP that
the Foundation's application to the Big Lottery was not dependant on Council
funding being assured if a robust business plan were in place.  Mr Edmond added:
"the Big Lottery likes our business plan but cannot regard it as robust unless
there is the necessary assurance that the Council will support us with revenue
funding. And so the Council has, as we maintained all along, put us in a classic
"catch 22"situation."

Mr Edmond's letter concludes: "There is, however, a last chance: if the Council
would now commit to an assurance of revenue support and modest capital funding,
then it seems likely that a positive recommendation can go to the Big Lottery
committee which meets in December to consider our application. A Council
commitment would also enable us to proceed with our application to SportScotland
for capital support, which we also need. However, time is very short as BL case
paper goes first to staff review in November."

Mr Edmond added: "Surely the Council will not look a gift horse in the mouth.
For a very modest input the Council could help secure a very valuable asset for
the area. The project could go ahead quickly: we have planning permission and
written assurances from Tulloch Homes that they will transfer all land in their
ownership reasonably needed for the pool. Most of the other land required is in
Council ownership and that has already been promised. And the level of annual
support needed is relatively very small compared with the support given to other
community and Council-owned pools.



Stuart Edmond

Dated 26th October 2009

The long-fought campaign to see a swimming pool built on the Black Isle
peninsula in Scotland continues. The Press & Journal newspaper carries an
article dated 27th October 2009 with yet another appeal from the Chairman of the
Black Isle Swimming Pool Foundation for the Highland Council to break the
funding deadlock with the Big Lottery: both parties are playing the "we'll fund
if you'll fund" game:

http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1456188

The You and Yours phone-in is focused on the Olympics today: see details on
their website if you would like to pose a question to Tessa Jowell or have
comments about the impact of the Olympics.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/youandyours/

Radio 4 12pm-1pm

--

Support Friends of the Earth

Good news for the Beccles Lido campaign in Suffolk: Beccles Lido Ltd have
succeeded in gaining charitable status; this is another step forward in the long
battle to get the Beccles pool re-opened.

(Waveney District Council who own both the Beccles Open Air Pool and the one in
Halesworth failed to open either pool this year.)


http://www.advertiser24.co.uk/content/advertiser24/news/story.aspx?brand=WAVOnli\
ne&category=News&tBrand=WAVOnline&tCategory=news&itemid=NOED23%20Oct%202009%2009\
%3A54%3A44%3A307