Wales National Pool in Swansea could need £1.8m bailout

Olympic swimmer Jazz Carlin passes on some tips to youngsters at the pool where she trained

Wales' national swimming pool in Swansea could need a £1.8m bailout as income plummets due to the coronavirus pandemic, council officers have warned.

The facility used by Olympic stars such as Jazz Carlin is run by Swansea Council and Swansea University.

A report to the council said a plan for each to pay £272,000 to keep the pool running until July may not be enough.

Officers said an appeal should be made to the Welsh Government and Sport Wales to help cover the costs.

The 50-metre pool closed in March due to the pandemic, and staff who were furloughed had their wages topped up from 80% to 100% by the council and university.

The pool began reopening in phases in August, but demand has not returned to normal. It also lost a large amount of half-term income during the fire-break lockdown, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The council and the university are contractually bound to underwrite the annual deficit of the pool until December 2023.

In the 12 months up to the end of July, the pool raised just under £900,000 in revenue - more than £400,000 less than expected due to the impact of Covid.

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Council cabinet members are being asked to pump in an extra £350,000 to cover costs to the end of March, but the report said a "reasonable worst-case scenario" could see the council and university having to pay £910,000 each in total subsidies by the end of July.

However, it adds that as the pool has national status, the Welsh Government and Sport Wales should be asked "why a local authority and university are left underwriting the cost of a national facility in truly unprecedented times".

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: "We understand the additional financial pressures associated with the pandemic, which local authorities are facing to maintain services.

"We have provided funding to Swansea Council to help support the Wales National Pool with loss of income via the local authority emergency hardship fund."