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Camden New Journal - by CHARLOTTE CHAMBERS
Published: 28 June 2007

Head Sue Ladipo - Says the pool is too costly to run

School pool to be axed

Repairs ‘too costly’

ONE of the last school swimming pools in Camden is to be demolished.
Headteacher Sue Ladipo is to get rid of the pool at Brecknock Primary School in Kentish Town because it is too costly to run.
Opponents of the move say the council should be investing in pools rather than allowing them to disappear.
The demolition will mean there are only four swimming pools left in Camden schools. The closure decision comes amid concern about the level of swimming provision for children in the borough.
Brenda Humphreys, who chairs London School Swimming Association, said children suffered when pools closed. “It would be a travesty if Brecknock close their pool,” she added.
She thought the school could make money by renting the pool to mother-and-baby groups.
Green councillor Adrian Oliver said: “It’s disappointing in that we have too few pools in Camden for the population. The school have probably been told there’s no money.”
The 50 year-old pool at the Cliff Villas school has been out of use for a year, owing to health and safety concerns.
Ms Ladipo said repairs would be too expensive. She added: “The swimming pool is in a very dilapidated state and would need to be completely redeveloped to bring it up to health and safety standards.
“It would have cost hundreds of thousands of pounds.”
Ms Ladipo said that, because of the pool’s size, only children aged up to six could use it, while disabled children were excluded completely.
A letter sent to parents asking for their views on the pool brought no response, she added. Governors, who include Channel 4 news anchor Jon Snow, will now have the final say on the pool’s future. They may be forced into a decision soon as work on a nursery will have to begin by March next year to qualify for government funding.
Mr Snow admitted it was a costly operation to keep the pool open, calling it a “perennial issue”.
Last year, Primrose Hill primary school also closed its pool.

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