Council receives Sport England funding to install solar panels at swimming pool

Three Rivers District Council has been awarded £152,800 for photo voltaic panels to be installed at William Penn Leisure Centre, in Rickmansworth.

Joanne Wagstaffe, the Chief Executive of the council, said: “We are delighted to have received this funding, which has enabled us to move to a more sustainable energy source for the William Penn Leisure Centre. Every change we can make to ensure we reduce our carbon emissions across the council is a step in the right direction, and this is another great example of that. I know how important swimming pools are to our local communities – and so it is vital that we keep these buildings as up-to-date and sustainable for the future as we can.”

The photo-voltaic cells will be installed on the roof of the leisure centre over the coming months.

More than 500 capital interventions in over 300 facilities with swimming pools have been awarded funding from the Government and Sport England’s £60m capital investment programme.

Lisa Dodd-Mayne, executive director, place at Sport England, said: “Swimming pools and leisure centres are vital community resources and are enormously important in helping people to be physically active. Many pools have faced a real and significant threat to their survival this year, as local authorities and operators have battled the challenge of increased energy and wider costs, weakened reserves and difficulties with retaining staff. Sport England is proud of the role we’ve played in supporting these facilities through this difficult period. We hope today’s funding announcement will enable more public pools to improve their energy efficiency to be more environmentally and financially sustainable, so they remain available for future generations to enjoy.”