Swindon Link Centre pool reopens after flooding

Swimmers were in the pool early on 2 January as it reopened

A swimming pool has re-opened after the leisure centre it is part of was closed by flooding in September 2023.

The pool at Swindon's Link Centre is the last part of the site to be brought back into use, and some swimmers arrived early to enjoy it again.

The flooding at the centre damaged much of the building, with parts such as the ice rink opening up gradually.

Jason Tait, head coach at South West Swim, said the pool had "been missed by our swimmers".

Swimmers were in the pool early on 2 January as it reopened

The group was offered the use of smaller pools while it was being fixed.

"It was great to be back. It's the biggest pool in the area," added Mr Tait.

"We've got the Wiltshire County Championships coming up there soon so the timing is brilliant."

He explained that they had "quite an impressive turnout" for a day after a Bank Holiday as swimmers returned to the pool.

"It is all up and running, it looks very clean. It looks a lot brighter in there.

"You can tell they're still doing some work around the edges. I understand the pool is not finished completely - they're improving it over 2024.

"That's also a good thing - there's going to be some investment in the pool," he added.

The leisure centre has been closed since 18 September

Mr Tait said: "Everyone that's been working on that [the pool reopening] has done a fantastic job.

"I don't think people understood the magnitude of what happened with that flood - from what I understand it was quite deep and a lot of kit was damaged and written off. It is really good to back."

The operator GLL said previously the pool was the final phase of the Link Centre re-opening.