"We're prepared to do whatever it takes to keep the pool open..." people in Woking react to proposed pool closure.
We've been speaking to residents in Woking as speculation continues around the Pool in The Park's future.
Councillors will be debating the council's medium term financial strategy in a meeting tonight, as speculation around the Pool in the Park's future continues.
A Facebook group called "Woking says no to closing Pool in the Park" has nearly two and a half thousand members, with a petition at nearly seven thousand signatures
Woking Borough Council issued a Section 114 notice back in June, which stops all non-essential spending.
In the video below, you can watch Greatest Hits Radio Surrey and East Hampshire's report on the council's spending ban back in June.
Earlier this month, it was revealed that the council would look into the phased closure of the building over the next three years. with an initial focus on the closure of the leisure pool to deliver early savings.
"People are very angry"
Trudi, who's a mum from Woking, told Greatest Hits Radio Surrey and East Hampshire that her daughter Maisi was helped significantly by daily physio at the pool.
Maisi has Perthes disease - a condition that affects the hip joint in children.
"It's amazing for Maisi now, she is out of a wheelchair - She'll always have perthes disease and she will need a hip replacement but at the moment she is walking around and running around.
"I'm going to get very emotional talking about this now. If it hadn't been for Pool in The Park and that local access to a pool, she could still be in a wheelchair.
"People are very angry and they're very passionate... we're prepared to do whatever it takes to keep the pool open.
"All that we can focus on as local residents is what can we do to keep that pool open."
"So important for Woking's lifeblood"
Members of an Aqua group meet at the Pool in The Park for exercise, and it's also an opportunity to socialise as a group after sessions.
Carole, who's one of the members of the group, said "It's immeasurably improved my health but the huge thing is also having a coffee afterwards and I've made pals..."
"The pool is a real community and I think it's so important for Woking's lifeblood that we have somewhere where all sorts of different people from the community can be together."
Another member, Janice, described the group as a "lifesaver".
Another member of the group said that "They need to look at cutting costs elsewhere that are less important than this is to the community ."
Lord, Barker and Forster react ahead of key council meeting
Some of the most prominent political figures in Woking have spoken about the Pool and the uncertainty around its future.
MP for Woking Jonathan Lord told us that "My daughter learnt to swim there with me, my wife who had a stroke had hydrotherapy there to start overcoming her disabilities."
"I think the tenor of people's response is shown by the fact that the petition to keep Pool in The Park open got over 6,000 signatures within its first week."
On the council meeting on Thursday evening, Lord said "I think there's going to be a delegation of residents going to the next council meeting to raise their concerns and put their points of view, that's great."
Also speaking about tonight's council meeting, Will Forster, the Deputy Leader of Woking Borough Council said that "tough decisions are inevitable, but no decision has been yet. The council's got until February to make a decision. What will be agreed tonight is to look at the options and to consult and consider what impacts there would be."
"If the council can increase charges to make the pool self-sufficient without subsidy that means it can stay open for the foreseeable future."
Forster added "I know the discretionary services like the Pool in The Park are really important to local people... I know that's such an important service."
Council leader Anne Marie Barker has said that "no decision has yet been made about the future of services" and that "the future course we must follow is challenging"
The council has said it will run public consultations into the proposed closures and funding cuts on October 2nd.