Fit for purpose?

Questions regarding Edinburgh Leisure are being asked in today's Scotsman; which featured a letter penned by a member of the Splashback campaign, in response to David Bellak, a pensioner concerned with Edinburgh Leisure's price rises:



Dear Editor

DAVID Bellak’s letter regarding the 33 per cent increase in price rises for pensioners using Edinburgh Leisure’s (EL) facilities (14 January) highlights a worrying trend in sports provision in the capital city. 

Crèche facilities at leisure centres have been withdrawn. Last spring, Edinburgh Leisure axed free swimming for primary-aged children. 

Since April 2010, Edinburgh schools no longer use EL services. Why? Last weekend Leith Waterworld, Edinburgh’s only leisure pool, closed because the savings would contribute to the bailout of the £7 million over-budget refurbishment of Royal Commonwealth Pool (RCP).
In doing so, Edinburgh Leisure disregarded one of the requirements of its funding agreement with the council to undertake an equalities assessment into how any closure might affect certain user groups, in Leith Waterworld’s case specifically the under-fives, children attending on their own and the disabled...

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More media on the campaign to save Leith Waterworld in the last couple of days:

The Edinburgh Evening News reported on the inauguration of the Homeless Itinerant Bathing Society (Edinburgh Branch) in its Monday 16 Jan edition:

CAMPAIGNERS who battled against the closure of Leith Waterworld are planning to tour other pools en masse to inspect their facilities.

Waterworld closed its doors to the public on Sunday, but now the families who led the fight to keep it open have formed themselves into the Homeless Itinerant Bathing Society (Edinburgh).  From this weekend, campaign members will get together each Sunday to visit a pool to undertake a “swim inspection” before reporting their findings to the city council.

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And STV reported on the formal complaint made to City of Edinburgh Council...

The campaign group Splashback has lodged a lengthy complaint about the conduct of Councillors while deciding the fate of Leith Waterworld which the group had hoped to save.

On Thursday, December 22 Splashback made a deputation to the City of Edinburgh Council at a Full Council meeting in a bid to prevent the leisure facility closing earlier this month.  The deputation failed to save LWW and the pool closed its doors on January 8.  Campaigners were “unhappy” with what they viewed as the “wrong decision” but were additionally disappointed by the behaviour of some Councillors present and as such Splashback submitted a complaint letter with eight specific objections.

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