Group hoping to get Falmouth's Ships and Castles reopened to launch Crowdfunder
The CIC says hundreds of children in Cornwall still do not have access to a swimming pool
Last updated 7th Jul 2022
The group trying to save Falmouth Leisure Centre has said hundreds of children in Cornwall now do not have access to a swimming pool, after the closure of Ships and Castles.
Pendennis Leisure Community Interest Company is launching a Crowdfunder to try and help with costs.
It is working alongside Falmouth Town Council to bring back the site, after its closure back in April.
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Gemma Adams from Pendennis Leisure said: "There's a statutory obligation for Cornwall council for each council to provide swimming lessons so children can swim 24m by the time they leave primary school.
"We've got to get it reopened. Yes we'd love a new facility in the future but we can't face another five to 10 years of the situation that we're in now.
"There's a huge risk of people getting into difficulty of drowning because we're literally a town that's surrounded by water".
Messages of support are pouring in from community groups and volunteers across the area, including MP for Truro and Falmouth Cherilyn Mackrory who has written a letter praising the group's goal to reopen the centre.
Pendennis Leisure CIC are calling for a shared prosperity fund and say they are looking for clarity of funding to make sure they can save the pool.
Matthew Thompson from Pendennis Leisure, said: "People with cars and money can drive to Helston and Camborne and Truro and get their kids to learn to swim there but the majority of children in Falmouth can't.
"So the really urgent issue for a coastal community is to get a swimming facility back open so our children can learn to swim again".
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Matthew added: "They have been locked up in Covid, they didn't have access to a pool, the pool wasn't open at the right times for the schools to get access - it's been very, very difficult and now they've got nowhere to learn".
Pendennis Leisure have been hosting community discussions with locals in Falmouth to talk about "the complexities and difficulties that lie ahead and possible solutions to them" and are continuing to find ways to move forward with the centre.