A historic and cherished swimming pool in east Reading is set to become key worker housing, with a vote on the plans next week.

Reading councillors backed the council’s controversial plan to turn the closed Arthur Hill pool into housing for doctors, social workers, nurses and police officers in September 2019.

The planning application for the proposal has since been submitted by the council, which would see the locally listed front of the building retained and 15 flats created at a cost of around £4.5 million.

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Members of Reading Borough Council’s (RBC) Planning Applications committee will vote on the plan on Wednesday, January 13.

Under the plans, the front of the building would be converted, while the back would be demolished, with a new building put up in its place.

The new homes would meet international sustainability and low carbon standards (Passivhaus) as the council drives towards it net-zero carbon target by 2030.

The plans include 12 one-bed flats and three two-bed flats.

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Arthur Hill was closed in December 2016 after RBC said repairs had become too costly.

Many protests follow and thousands signed a petition calling for residents to be consulted on the future of the pool.

But councillor Jason Brock, leader of RBC, said there was consultation with the public when Arthur Hill was closed.

The council has committed to providing a new 25m pool at nearby Palmer Park, now expected to open in September 2022 due to Covid-19, to replace the lost facility.

RBC had previously planned to sell Arthur Hill to a housing developer, accepting a bid from One of A Kind Developments in July 2018, but the sale fell through in 2019.