The future of Kenilworth's two new swimming pools will be discussed by Warwick District Council's (WDC) cabinet next week.

Amidst delays and rising costs, locals were told during September's public meeting that a decision on the leisure project would be made before Christmas, with the pools not likely to be built until mid-2026 if they still go ahead.

The council has considered the idea of building a new pool elsewhere, but says this could be even more expensive and take until at least 2028 to complete.

An amended application for the designs for Abbey Fields has now been submitted for the council to consider.

And while leader of the council, Cllr Ian Davison, has not ruled out the possibility of scrapping the project altogether, a report set to be discussed next Thursday (November 2) recommends the Abbey Fields project go ahead.

It also says the project would be "funded by external borrowing from the Public Works Loan Board," with the revenue cost of the borrowing to be "factored into the [council's] medium term financial strategy".

New Contracts Needed

WDC's report recommends the council's chief executive negotiates a new contract with Kier Construction ltd - the firm behind the build.

It does not give any indication of a new budget, saying this is confidential.

But previous estimates from Kier said the Abbey Field project could now cost as much as £22.6 million.

A breakdown of the predicted costs for Kenilworth's new swimming pools (image via Warwick District Council)

"It is intended that detailed negotiations on cost will be undertaken with Kier to establish a new and agreed contract price before any final decision to proceed can be made," the report said.

"In this way it will be possible to reinstate the existing balance of the risk between the council and the contractor, as shown in the existing contract between the parties. 

"There is a fine balance to be made in these negotiations on price."

So far WDC has spent £3.39 million on the Abbey Fields project.

Other Sites

In its previous assessments, Kier said building the pools elsewhere could set the council back even further.

The cabinet report also says moving elsewhere would mean money would have to be spent bringing the demolition site in Abbey Fields back into use.

"Historic England has confirmed that it would require that the site was returned to amenity grassland or wildflower meadow to ensure the least damage to the remains," it added. 

"It could not, therefore, be opened as an attraction or educational resource. 

"Construction on another site in Kenilworth would be likely to cause disruption to people living near to the site, both during construction and when the building was in use."

It also says the council could not guarantee that another site could be bought.

And if the council were to use one of its existing pieces of land in the town, it would then have to forfeit some of the £9,591,000 it has been given by Homes England for the new school and 516 homes it is set to build.

An artist's impression of the new leisure centre in Abbey Fields (image via Warwick District Council)

No Pool At All

While Cllr Davison previously refused to assure MP for Kenilworth and Southam Sir Jeremy Wright that the pools would definitely go ahead, the report does imply this is unlikely.

"This option would mean that people in Kenilworth would have to travel to other towns to swim, leading to a substantial loss of amenity for local residents and increase in carbon emissions," it adds.

"Sport England would confirm that the council was not providing the necessary swimming facilities for local residents, contrary to the council's own local plan and sports facility strategy."

Last week Kenilworth Town Council agreed to write to its district colleagues to say the idea of no swimming at all should not be entertained.

Once cabinet has discussed the report next week, a decision will then be put to the full council on November 15.

See the full report here.