Fear of 2,000 Swimming Pool closures in shocking Report

Swim England’s new report ‘A Decade of Decline’ shows a worrying future for swimming suggesting that 2,000 swimming pools in England could be closed by 2030 without urgent government action. 

As we reflect on magnificent achievement of Team GB Relay Triathlon team in Tokyo this summer, majestically swimming their way across Tokyo Bay in the first leg of three disciplines to Olympic Gold, those successes threaten to be engulfed by a dark cloud on the horizon which puts the future of all our aquatic sports in danger. 

We should reflect that whilst triathlons often involve open water swimming in a river, lake or bay many of us don’t have access to open water to practise so our open-water swimming drills are done in our community pool.  This coupled with the fact that open water won’t always be welcoming temperature-wise in the winter months it goes without saying that swimming pools are naturally essential to the future of Triathlon and all aquatic sports if we are to nurture the next generation of talent for the Paris Olympics 2024 and beyond. 

It’s simply fact that swimming is a great sport for all levels of fitness and experience, with myriad physical and mental benefits to be had from time in the pool. As community pools are shut and not replaced it not just athletes who will be at a lost but also swimming clubs, recreational swimmers and those people with long-term health conditions who rely on the water for their only form of exercise.  

The looming shortage is based on pools constructed in the 1960s and 1970s and coming to the end of their lifespan, with not enough new facilities being built to replace them. The coronavirus pandemic has only exacerbated the problem with 206 swimming pools already having closed.

Without considerable investment, Swim England says there will be a “huge decline” in the availability of pools estimating that before the end of the decade the number of pools will have dropped by nearly 50% from 4,336 to around 2,468, if sufficient intervention is not made. 

Swim England figures show 4.7 million people swim at least twice a month, making it one of the most popular physical activities in the country – their predictions suggest that 3.86 million people could be pushed out of swimming.

Below is an excerpt of Swim Englands report ‘A Decade of Decline’ that shows the number of pools available at the end of each decade