Seaton swimming pool to make a splash this summer
Seaton Primary School's swimming pool will soon be open for anyone to use, thanks in part to East Devon District Council.
Over the past two years the pool has been given a thorough makeover. The old outdoor pool has been covered over with a structure that can be opened up in good weather, changing rooms and showers have been added and there is now access from the Elizabeth Road playing fields.
Last year, on a trial basis, Leisure East Devon opened the pool to the public. This year they are planning much more and Seaton will have a genuine community swimming pool to make use of.
The project began when Seaton Primary School made a bid for £50,000 of funding from East Devon District Council back in 2010. This Section 106 (developers') funding was collected from developers who built new homes in Seaton to improve sporting facilities in the parish.
Since 2008 EDDC has taken the ground-breaking approach of distributing Section 106 money for sport and play through a Participatory Budgeting process using extensive community involvement.
There was £75,000 available and Seaton Town Council collected ideas from the community on how they wanted it to be spent. Seven different projects bid for the money.
Seaton Town Council and East Devon District Council took the seven ideas out to the residents and asked them to vote for which projects they wanted to see happen. Altogether 500 residents of all ages voted and an amazing 84% of them voted for the swimming pool project. The school was granted the £50,000.
In 2011, the school was successful in a bid for a further £14,000 in the form of a Making it Local grant. More funding was provided by the Primary School, from Devon County Councillor Jim Knight and from the Rotary Club. Other support has been received from Leisure East Devon. In total over £80,000 was raised to carry out the work.
The Headteacher of Axe Beacon Federation schools, Mr Alan Simpson, is pleased that the project is now complete. He said: “Seaton Primary School is at the heart of the local community and it is good to see our facilities being available and used by that community. Working with our partners we have been able to make the swimming pool a fantastic asset for the school and for everyone in Seaton and the surrounding area”.
Councillor Steph Jones, Member Champion for Seaton said: "Thank you to everyone that voted for their favourite sports projects back in 2010. Your views really did make a difference and have resulted in the outdoor gym in Jubilee Gardens and £10,000 towards improvements to the Elizabeth Road play area, as well as this fantastic project. It is great news that thanks to the hard work of Seaton Primary School the people of Seaton will be able to enjoy this facility for years to come".
Councillor Gaynor Sedgwick of Seaton Town Council said: "We were pleased to give permission for the entrance to the swimming pool to be accessed via Elizabeth Road playing field. Its a great facility for the town and another good example of EDDC, Seaton Town Council and Seaton Primary School working together".
The school will continue to use the pool during the school day to provide swimming instruction for all the children and will be open to the public at other times. The pool will be managed by Leisure East Devon with public sessions, events and activities starting this Easter and continuing through the summer and into early autumn.
Picture credit: Terry Ife courtesy of the Midweek Herald
