Call for Isle of Man government to help struggling regional pool

The report found the Southern Swimming Pool was in a downward spiral

The Isle of Man government must step in to help a struggling pool in Castletown before it becomes insolvent next year, an independent report has found.

The review was commissioned to examine the management of the island's local authority-run swimming facilities amid calls for increased government funding.

Finances at the Southern Swimming Pool were "critical" after "years of underinvestment", the report said.

Up to £1m was needed to address problems with the building, it added.

Wider issues caused by a "fragmented approach" to providing the loss-making swimming facilities was also highlighted by management consultants Knight, Kavanagh & Page Ltd.

An annual operational subvention of about £1.1m is paid by the government to prop up the three sites, run by local authorities in the south, north, and west.

It also runs a central swimming pool in Douglas at the National Sports Centre.

Management overhaul

The report found governance structures at the regional pools were "not fit for purpose", the quality of facilities was "pot luck", and government oversight was lacking.

Utilities costs remain the biggest challenges to the pools, after gas bills rose by 242% and electricity prices by 32% between October 2021 and September 2022, it added.

The consultants recommended a "radical" overhaul of how the pools were managed, including a complete government takeover or investment to build new money-making facilities at each site.

Proposals for a single pool board were rejected at a meeting in September as neither the northern nor western boards wanted to take on the liabilities of the southern pool.

The consultants said state intervention at that pool was "a must" after the government had effectively "wound down" the outdated facility, with "no clear decision" about a replacement.

About £20,000 had been invested in the Castletown site in the last eight years, while the two other pools received £250,000 in government capital.