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SUMMER 2004 - NORTHOLT SWIMARAMA - EALING COUNCIL PLANNING REPLACEMENT ON SITE
Ealing Council have contacted us to make clear their intentions not to lose a pool in Northolt.  Concerned swimmers and user groups have expressed their concerns that the pool would be lost to a housing development, especially since the alternative site for the pool, in a nearby school, has fallen through. 

However the Ealing Council say they definitely don't want to lose a pool in Northolt.  The existing Northolt Swimarama is nearing the end of its natural life.  The Council's current plan is to develop the adjacent car park with probably housing and use the capital receipts from this to build a new pool on the current site.  They expect the scheme to be self financing, as they are not optimistic about lottery funding.

The new plans will include a separate teaching pool if this is possible within the budget.

The Council are waiting for a report back from architect's investigations, which they expect to have early in 2005.  Following this they will be contacting the Swimarama user groups, swimmers and other pool users to consult about the new scheme. 

ACTON BATHS
Ealing Council also clarified the situation regarding Acton Baths.  The plan to redevelop this as part of a bigger scheme including the Town Hall fell through due to the architectural listing of theTown Hall.  They say over £1 million has been spent on the Baths in the last 6 years - including new plant and tiling - and that the leader of council has stated that if the pool is replaced it will only be with a better pool.

50M POOLS
Ealing Council submitted both the Northolt site and Acton Baths as possible sites for the new 50m pools being planned by Sport England - and both sites were rejected.

SPRING 2004

Please read this update from Paul Hyman at Ealing Council, 18 April 2005 before reading further

Swimmers and other pool and leisure centre users are facing the closure of Northolt Swimarama as early as next October. Ealing Council are planning to knock down the building and sell the site to a developer for £3.5 million. While there are proposals to possibly build a new pool on on the site of Northolt High School, swimmers are concerned about:

1. Lack of consultation about the proposed changes
2. That the school is unhappy about how the public can safely be given access to a part of their site
3. The new proposal has only 1 pool instead of the existing 3 pools and this will mean an end to the swimming club, women-only swimming and generally limit the variety of use of the pool.
4. If the school and surrounding primary schools are using the pool for teaching, will there be room for the public to swim as well?
5. The proposed pool is shallow and will not allow for synchronised swimming, diving, water-polo, sub-aqua or canoe training
6. The proposed pool has a stand of just 142 which will not allow for galas
7. The car park for the Swimarama is being sold as part of the site, so where will people park to go swimming? And where will the coaches, parents and travelling teams park if there are galas?

The council are planning to knock down the Swimarama before the new pool is agreed and built, swimmers are worried that the lack of continuity will mean the end of many of the clubs, and also that the new pool may fall through altogether.

Ealing Gazette 19 March 2004 says

"SWIMMING POOL PLAN COMES UNDER MORE FIRE"

A presentation by the company behind plans for a new swimming pool to replace Northolt Swimarama has failed to convince sceptics who are e opposed to the idea.

Most of the 50 people who attended the Northolt area committee on Wednesday last week were still reeling from the fact that they discovered news of the 35 year old swimming complex's closure through the Gazette in January.

Ealing Council want to demolish the building in Eastcote Lane and sell off the site to a private developer for an estimated £3.5m.  It has promised to reinvest the money into building a new public pool and sports complex in the grounds of Northolt High School.

At the meeting Paul Hyman head of Active Ealing said the Swimarama had major structural problems and estimated the cost of repair at between £4m and £5m.

He said "There is just not the money available to either repair the building or build a new pool.  The danger is that if we don't do something we are heading towards a situation where the pool will close in a few years.  It was only designed for a 30 year lifespan"

Peter Simpson of S&P Architects, which has been asked by the council to design a new swimming pool complex for Northolt, told the audience the new two-storey building would feature a 25 meter six lane pool with 142 spectator seats, two dance studios and a 300 square meter gym that could accommodate up to 80 people.

However it will only have one pool, compared to three at the existing Swimarama - a loss of 151 square metres of pool space.

Ted Hawkins, an Amateur Swimming Association teacher living in Eskdale Avenue, Northolt, was one of many people who accused the council of cutting community facilities. He said "even if the new pool is built we are losing a significant amount of space.  You can not fit the elderly, disabled , other school and members of the public into one pool no matter how well organised the timetable is"

" The whole situation stinks.  The council knew about the condition of the Swimarama building at least five years ago, why did it not save up money then to do the repair work?"

" According to Councillor Yvonne Johnson, cabinet member of leisure there is not enough space on the school's site to add another pool, and even if there was it would cost around £300,000.

She apologised to residents for finding out about the Swimarama's proposed closure in the Gazette and promised the council was working on ways to shorten the time between the building's closure and the opening of the new pool, which will take a year to build. That may include leasing back the Swimarama site before developers move in while the new pool is built"

http://www.ealing.gov.uk/services/sports+and+leisure/leisure+centres/northolt.asp

Northolt Swimarama
Eastcote Lane North, Northolt, Middlesex UB5 4AB (see map)
Tel: (020) 8422 1176
Transport: Underground Northolt Station (Central line)
Opening hours: Monday 7am-7pm, Tuesday 7am-9.45pm, Wednesday 7am-10pm, Thursday 7am-7.30pm, Friday 7am-7pm, Saturday 8am-5pm (ladies only 4pm-5pm), Sunday 8am-5pm
Facilities: two swimming pools, 63m water slide, diving board, fitness suite, sunbeds, party-room and water inflatables.
Managed by: Leisure Connection
Last tickets are sold 30 minutes before end of session. Children under eight years must be accompanied by an adult

andrew L smith

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andrew.leonard.smith@googlemail.com Yet there is nothing in the plans to replace the 62 metre flume in the new facility which is yet another flume lost in london. over recent years london has lost at least 1ooo metres of flumage from its pools including in some cases the pools themselves the losses include the flumes at harrow leisure centre pools in the park richmond chingford fantaseas croydon water palace watford springs york hall kensington leisure centre. although quite a few flumes do still exist in london provision is very fragmented and apart from the waterfront in woolwich london does not have a major flume facility to rectify this a waterpark of at least 6 flumes should be built onto the olympic aquatic centre and existing flumes should be given better protection. fluming is an important health giving and stimulating activity that is enjoyed by all ages and should be recognised as such.