Community paddling pool 'no longer affordable'

Councillor John Beckingham said the pool was not affordable

A community paddling pool is to remain closed amid quotes of £300,000 to restore it.

The pool in St George's Park, Kidderminster, was last in use in 2022 and the subject of a campaign to save it, with one petition amassing more than 2,000 signatures.

But John Beckingham, chair of Kidderminster Town Council's Operational Services Committee, which had proposed the facility's continued closure, said: "We got three quotes for renovating the paddling pool and the average was about £300,000 and it also comes with operation costs of about £40,000 per year.

"We've found that the paddling pool really isn't affordable in its current state."

His assessment comes just months after Kidderminster Town Council announced plans to reopen the pool in 2026.

The councillor said it was his belief that all political parties on the authority wanted the paddling pool to be open, but the authority had to be realistic over what was financially feasible.

Kidderminster Town Council was quoted an average of £300,000 to fix the pool, according to one member

"This isn't the end of the story for St George's Park," he said. "There are potential other solutions but this paddling pool in its current state has got to close.

"It is unfortunately the financial position of the town council. We have to be realistic in the expectations of what it is we can afford to do."