History

Built and run by the local community

Southwell swimming pool was built in the 1960s following a groundbreaking crowdfunding initiative by the community to raise £40k - worth £800k in today’s terms. At that time, the people involved set up a Trust (now known as Southwell Leisure Centre Trust - SLCT) which is a charity with the express aim of establishment and maintenance of the pool and leisure centre for the public benefit, in particular the inhabitants of Southwell and district. After many years of doing this successfully, forced closures during the pandemic meant that Southwell Leisure Centre (SLC) was closed for many months, putting a huge strain on its finances. In October 2021 Newark & Sherwood District Council (NSDC) signed a 25 year Lease with SLCT to take over the running and costs of SLC.

Swimming Pool Closure

The main swimming pool at SLC was closed in October 2023 following the discovery of a water leak, which turned out likely to be a result of corroded pipework. After obtaining a quote for repair themselves in late 2023, NSDC concluded that building a new pool, as opposed to repairing or replacing the existing pipework, was the best and most economical way to deal with this issue. A further quote was obtained by the Trust in early 2024 but NSDC maintained its position.

There was considerable local opposition to building a new pool, which would take 2 years. There was strong body of opinion for repair.

Given the large investment required for this (£5.5 million), NSDC wished to acquire SLC through a transfer of Trust land. This could not be done without gaining the approval of the Charity Commission (CC). NSDC considered there needed to be a joint approach to the CC with the Trust to resolve this. Unfortunately the Lease terms meant that 6 of 9 Trustees were conflicted on this issue and the Trust was left legally unable to make binding decisions.

This issue was not resolved until NSDC created new independent Trustees in early May 2024. Shortly after this, NSDC decided that it would prefer to withdraw from the Lease and hand SLC back to the Trust to manage and run. NSDC did not appoint a new set of Trustees in the annual review in mid May 2024 as a result of this.