THE FIRST public swims at Merthyr Tydfil Leisure centre for four years have taken place following the opening of the new pools there.
The pools opened on Saturday, May 25 having been closed since 2019 for repairs and a major £5m refurbishment.
They include new facilities such as the main swimming pool which is 25m with six lanes, a teaching pool, a splash pool with interactive water play and refurbished changing facilities.
The idea is to have a soft launch of the timetable to allow them to get back into the swing of things so the phase one timetable is running until Sunday, June 2 where early morning swim for fitness sessions (the new name for lane swimming) and family time are available across the three pools.
Phase two in the early summer will see a wider programme of early morning, lunchtime and evening swim sessions including free swimming for over-60s and under-16s as part of the Welsh Government’s Free Swim Initiative (FSI), family sessions at weekends and pool hire available to sports clubs and groups.
Phase three in the late summer will see more of the above and the introduction of swimming lessons and phase four in the early autumn will include specialist support programmes such as the National Exercise Referral Scheme (NERS), disability friendly sessions and school swimming and there will also be water-based group exercise classes such as aqua aerobics.
Those with a monthly or annual membership with Merthyr Tydfil Leisure Centre or Aberfan Community Centre can use the pools at the leisure centre for no extra charge.
For non-members an adult swim is £4.50 per session, for under-18s and over-60s it is £3 per session and it’s free for those aged between 0 and 3 and for spectators.
It follows a £5 million investment by Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns Programme, Salix Finance and Merthyr Tydfil Council.
The pools will be run by social enterprise Halo behalf of the council after leisure services in the town were transferred back to the council from Merthyr Tydfil Leisure Trust at the end of April.
