Liberal Democrats fight to save popular swimming pool (Derby City Liberal Democrats)

Derby City Liberal Democrats <info@derbycitylibdems.org.uk>

Liberal Democrats fight to save popular swimming pool

July 9, 2007 12:23 PM

Local campaigners, Joe Naitta, Cllr Ruth Skelton and Cllr Bob Troup with some of the petitions they have collected to save Gayton Swimming Pool

Local people and the Liberal Democrats are fighting the Labour Council's plans to close Gayton Swimming Pool

Derby Liberal Democrats have vowed to continue the fight to save a popular local swimming pool. Labour leaders on Derby Council have said they intend to close the Swimming Pool at Gayton Junior School.

The Liberal Democrats and local residents have run petitions to save the pool and already have the signatures of hundreds of people against the closure.

Now Derby Liberal Democrat Councillors will be putting forward a motion to the next Full Council meeting calling for the pool to be saved. The Motion calls for the shelving of plans to demolish the pool. It also states that the Council should instead work with the community to save the pool.

Campaign organiser Liberal Democrat Cllr Ruth Skelton is proposing the motion to save the pool, "Gayton Swimming Pool is incredibly popular, swimming classes at the pool are oversubscribed. It is madness that Labour bosses on the council are trying to demolish the pool when so many people use it.

"Local people and the Liberal Democrats have been fighting for months against the closure plans. It is clear that local people want and need this facility. Our motion, which we hope councillors of all parties will support, calls for the pool to be transferred to the local community who could keep it open on a not for profit basis.

"I and many other people were taught to swim at Gayton Pool as children. We should not be denying future generations of children the opportunity to learn to swim at a popular local swimming pool".