Campaigners for new hydro pool given 'hope again'

Proposals for a new hydrotherapy pool in Peterborough got a significant boost at a city council meeting.

Councillors on the authority's cabinet voted unanimously to approve redevelopment of The Barn on Hodgson Avenue in Werrington, amid hopes a third-party will build one there.

The city's St George's therapy pool was decommissioned and demolished after survey found it needed £270,000 of repairs. Since 2022, campaigners have been calling for a replacement.

Karen Oldale, of St George's Friends and Service Users, said Tuesday's vote was a "significant and important first step" and offered "new hope" for users.

"The closure of St George's without a replacement had a devastating impact on the health and wellbeing of the residents who depended on the hydrotherapy pool," she added.

"On behalf of service users, I am very relieved and grateful. It gives us hope again."

It is believed the proposed new pool will have robotic-assisted therapy equipment.

The council's Labour leader, Shabina Qayyum, said it was a "really good news story for our city".

"We are so pleased that a private provider has taken an interest in this [and] has started right at the beginning in wanting hydrotherapy in our city," she told the Local Democracy Reporting Service after the meeting.

Qayyum, also a GP, highlighted how vital hydrotherapy can be in treating medical conditions, alleviating pain and discomfort and helping trauma rehabilitation.

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