Hi, everyone. It feels like update time!
Many of you will have noticed the building work at the pool site. This is going really well, with only a few little surprises along the way, and we’re on track to have the office / kitchen / toilets plus the plant room extension built by the end of May. This will let us get on with the plant room works (replacement of all the machinery needed to run the pool). Following approval from the Trustee Board, we have also asked our contractor onsite (JLS Carpentry & Build) to take on the work to remove the fibreglass coping and cladding around the pool edge, replacing it with stone coping and composite cladding – a critical task before we can consider opening.
We get asked a lot about when we expect to open. The answer has always been ‘we’re not sure’! This is frustrating, no doubt, for everyone who’s supported us – but it remains true. Realistically, we are unlikely to fully open to the public this year. There is still a lot of work to be done. If the works continue to proceed as planned, we may open to some groups late this year, and consider limited public opening – but at this stage, it’s not guaranteed.
There are a number of key projects we still aspire to complete to make the pool accessible and enjoyable for all. Opening as a cold-water pool is our plan at present, and will allow us to start generating some revenue, which, alongside grant funding, will support us with the next stages of the project. At this stage, we cannot afford to heat the pool: the price of gas led us to the decision to decommission all gas supply to the site; and in the future, we will install heat pumps. While we have planned our build to incorporate this in future, we simply don’t have the funds to complete that work at the moment. Another element of the project we need to save funds for is the installation of solar to the plant room and office roof. This will not only save us money in the long term, but helps us meet our environmental aspirations. One of the most critical items we cannot afford at this stage is pool covers – this will help to keep our costs down in terms of pool warmth and water evaporation. We will continue to seek grant-funding over the coming months. Of course, our fundraising continues, and everything you do to support us is very much appreciated.
You may have seen a little while back that we advertised for a [Volunteer General Manager role](https://wcsp.org.uk/volunteer-general-manager-role/). We’ve not had any responses to that – but it remains our goal to find someone to take on the day-to-day management of the pool once we’re up and running. We are, without doubt, only going to succeed with enough volunteers – so if that could be you, please do let us know. Once we consider opening, we will need volunteers to operate the plant and machinery, lifeguards, general volunteers, etc. – we will be sure to let you know what we need, and if you can assist, that’s what will get the gates open! Having a pool ready to open is the “easy” part: the real challenge comes when we need to actually operate it!
For now, that’s all – please do feel free to ask email info@wcsp.org.uk
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