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Disabled swimmers stunned by St Annes closure
VOLUNTEERS from a Fylde disabled swimmers club say they are "devastated" and preparing to fold following the closure of St Annes Swimming Pool.
Fylde Otters, which regularly attracts 35 disabled users and their carers, has provided weekly water- based sessions for disabled people at the pool for more than 20 years.
But following the closure of the baths last Thursday, the club is set to be disbanded, leaving many disabled users without their only chance to get out of the house and do essential exercise.
St Annes pool closed on Thursday evening, five months after cash-strapped Fylde Council voted to axe it.
Otters founding member Betty Green, 76, who has been involved with the session for the last two decades, said "everything humanly possible" had been done to keep the club running.
The group, who held their final session on Monday, will now hold an "emotional" final farewell later this month.
Mrs Green said: "I'm absolutely sickened.
"When I came back on Monday, I just thought there is no more swimming for disabled people. It is very sad.
"I think it upset me more when I saw the pool empty on television."
The club is preparing to fold after being unable to take up offers to move to pools in either Kirkham or Fleetwood.
Mrs Green added: "It makes a big difference for people who can use the pool.
"Some will now just not go at all. It will be the end of the line."
Lytham Coun Kath Harper says the "logistical" problems of moving the swimming club has led to it preparing to disband.
She said: "It is very sad for everybody. St Annes suited everybody because of its location.
"Hopefully, some of the members will be able to continue their swimming but not as a club."
The council voted to shut the pool in a bid to offset a 1m-plus budget deficit.
Closing the pool will save Fylde Council 204,000 during the next 12 months and 502,000 in the following year.
Coun Simon Renwick, cabinet member for culture and tourism, said: "We are very sad that St Annes baths has had to close for the moment.
"It was a hard decision and nobody took it lightly. We have tried to accommodate all users and we have offered the group a solution."
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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