Reading swimming pools: Council called out over delays

The council has been called out for delays on the delivery of new leisure facilities that were meant to be finished in 2020.

A screenshot has been shared online of a council webpage declaring that new swimming pools at Palmer Park and Rivermead Leisure Centre would be open for public use in 2020 as part of an upgrade project.

The webpage is titled ‘Central Pool & Arthur Hill Pool closures’ which states that the new pools at these centres would replace the Arthur Hill Pool and the Central Pool, which closed in December 2016 and 2017 respectively.

However, since then the upgrades project has experienced a series of substantial delays.

Firstly, the webpage declares that the council would go into a contract with a leisure services provider in 2018. However, the council only began its contract with Greenwich Leisure Ltd (GLL) in summer 2021.

Prior to that, the pandemic struck, which added to the layer of uncertainty.

The Central Pool & Arthur Hill Pool Closures webpage (Image: Reading Borough Council)

A council spokesperson said the  ‘Central Pool & Arthur Hill Pool Closures’ webpage is out of date and has long since been removed.

Explaining the reasons for the delays the spokesperson said: “Since GLL took on the operating of Reading’s leisure centres in summer 2021, the council has promoted a timeline of late 2022 for delivering Palmer Park Leisure Centre, with Rivermead’s new leisure centre to follow in 2023.

“Most if not all large-scale developments have suffered significant and unprecedented challenges over the past two years.

“Most significantly, as a direct result of the Covid pandemic, major material shortages and, more recently, inflationary-related issues.

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“Despite the many challenges, the opening of the community pool at Palmer Park remains on time and is now just weeks away.

“Once open from December 19, it will be the only facility of its kind in the region, and one of only a handful across the country, to offer both a community pool and a velodrome.”

Progress at Palmer Park and Rivermead leisure centre can be found in videos on the council’s YouTube page.

The spokesperson continued: “As it is a major construction project it is difficult to give a more definitive schedule for the 2023 opening at this time, but we will of course update residents as soon as we are able to.

“We would always advise residents wanting details of the latest progress to regularly check our social media accounts where there have been numerous updates.”

Palmer Park Leisure Centre, which is due to open in December 2022. Credit: Reading Borough Council

The spokesperson also argued that regular updates have been provided on both projects.

Those who are interested in viewing progress can visit the council’s news site, its leisure project page and GLL’s website.

Finally, the spokesperson said: “The council and our leisure partners, GLL, remain fully committed to delivering the modern new leisure facilities, including new swimming pools, a town of our size and status deserves.”