New pool on track for 2028 opening, council told

A new swimming pool in a city was on track to open in September 2028 with its planning application to be submitted by July, a council has been told.

Zameer Ali, Labour's cabinet member for communities, poverty and public health, asked a Peterborough City Council budget meeting on Wednesday to support the project in its next stages of pre-construction development.

"Subject to approval, preliminary works are anticipated to begin in October 2026, with construction of the building commencing in February 2027," he said.

The new facility would be the city's only public indoor swimming pool after the Regional Pool on Bishop's Road was closed in 2024 due to structural issues.

According to the council's plans the new venue would include an eight-lane, 25-metre pool and a 20-metre four-lane learner pool with a moveable floor.

The facility would also feature poolside and balcony seating, a café, softplay, and a fitness suite with 150 stations and studios, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Ali informed the meeting that more than half of the anticipated costs of the pool would come from a £20m funding initiative by the government's Growth Mission Fund, following the authority's submission of a full business case.

"The submission sets a clear and compelling economic and strategic case for investment for the important facility," he said.

Shabina Qayyum, the Labour leader for the city council, said she was "delighted" by the update.

"We've reached the stage now where we can genuinely say that a new swimming pool is coming to our city," she added.

Councillors voted to award Alliance Leisure Services Limited the contract and budget for it to generate technical designs - known as RIBA 3 and 4 - for the development.

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