Anger as paddling pool is ripped out

A public paddling pool is being permanently removed, angering residents who have fought a four-year campaign to save it.

Kidderminster Town Council in Worcestershire is ripping out the derelict pool at St George's Park, which was closed in 2022 due to maintenance problems.

The authority has revealed that it would have cost around £265,000 to repair it, calling it "unaffordable".

More than 2,000 people had signed a petition to try and force a U-turn. Jacqui Penn, a resident, said: "It's a sad day."

The pool dates back more than 50 years, but has become increasingly derelict in recent years after problems were found in a pump, forcing its closure.

The town council had pledged to try and reopen the site as recently as last year, but said recent quotes meant it could not afford to repair it.

Penn added: "It's been here for so many years - I personally have brought three generations to the paddling pool.

"The council just aren't listening, it's so unfair. They are asking people 'what do you want to see in its place?'

"The answer is simple - a replacement pool."

The park was previously run by Wyre Forest District Council before the site and two others were handed over to the town council in about 2017.

It was the only pool of its type in the district after Bewdley's pool was dug up.

Fleur Boutayre, another resident, said: "It's extremely sad - the local community needed that pool.

"Every time I come down here in the summer, there's so many people using the pool."

Three years ago residents launched a fundraising attempt to try and save the pool - with the repair costs at the time estimated at £104,000.

The council will now spend around £10,000 on restoring the site to grass, saying the aim is to make it blend in with the rest of the park.

Councillor Doug Hine, the mayor of Kidderminster, said: "It's a very sad day for me, and for the council.

"It's not a decision we are happy to make, but in order to be financially responsible it's one we've had to make.

"It's the cost which is the factor, which has changed our minds on the council."

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