Last week the council announced that all swimming pools in the district would be opening from the 12th April – all but Knaresborough’s.
Harrogate Borough Council have confirmed that there are logistical issues with repairs to Knaresborough pool and currently they are dependent on engineers from Spain, but are also looking for a UK-based solution.
A council spokeswoman said:
There is an on-going issue with the main filtration system at Knaresborough Swimming Pool that is nearing 30-years-old.
Due to the specialist nature of the equipment required and complexity of the work involved, only a single bid received through the tender process met this requirement.
The contractor appointed specialist engineers from Spain – who have experience of fixing aging swimming pools – to carry out this work. Which, due to the travel restrictions, has meant they are currently unable to do so.
We are having on-going conversations with the contractor to see if we can find a UK-based solution, but at the moment there is no alternative.
We understand residents’ frustrations and are equally as disappointed that the pool cannot open in the coming weeks.
As soon as we have an update we will let our customers knows.
Knaresborough Liberal Democrats have written to Harrogate Borough Council pushing for the town’s swimming pool to be opened as soon as possible.
Local campaigner Matt Walker has written to the Cabinet member responsible for leisure, asking for greater transparency as the “announcement raised more questions than it answered.”
Knaresborough Pool has been closed multiple times over the year for repeated maintenance work and it has now been closed for over a year.
Matt Walker, Knaresborough Liberal Democrat said:
The council appears to have taken its eye off the ball, yet again. Residents deserve answers.
Many other organisations have continued to carry out essential maintenance work during the lockdowns. It would appear that this is nothing more than poor planning from Harrogate Borough Council, but questions certainly need to be answered.
Knaresborough Pool is a real community asset.
It is important for the health and wellbeing of thousands of local residents, so residents shouldn’t have to wait many additional months to see it return.
