THE reopening of the swimming pool at Sutton Leisure Centre faces a “significant challenge” – and there is currently no date set for it.

But there is good news for Newton-le-Willows Health and Fitness, which is set to receive major funding.

A total of 325 swimming pools and leisure centres across England will receive a share of £60.5 million to ensure their long-term financial sustainability by improving their energy efficiency in order to keep running costs down.

Hundreds of facilities have received Government investment to help improve the energy efficiency of their pools and leisure centres.

Measures being supported by the latest Swimming Pool Support Fund investment include funding for new heating systems, solar panels, better insulation and other energy saving interventions.

The latest round of funding is intended to help the longer term energy and financial resilience of the sector, with 96 per cent of applicants for the latest round being successful in the application for Government and Sport England funding.

The “amount recommended” for Newton-le-Willows Health and Fitness is £456,164.

A St Helens Council spokesperson said: “This funding of £456,000 from Sports England will support our work to tackle the climate emergency we face by introducing new technology to help us reduce our carbon emissions.

“Swimming pools use a lot of energy and as a council we have a responsibility to lead the way as we aim to hit our net zero emissions target by 2040 so introducing this kind of technology will help us towards that aim.

“This funding was available for swimming pools currently in operation only, not for potential new build or recommissioning currently closed pools. We continue to look for potential funding opportunities across our services to provide residents with vital services.”

The spokesperson added: “But the current financial picture for councils across the country, alongside inflation in the construction sector and soaring energy costs make projects like the reopening of Sutton Pool a significant challenge. The need to balance our budget means that we have to find ways to run our services as efficiently as possible.”

In August 2022, St Helens Council insisted that it “remains committed” to bringing the swimming pool at Sutton Leisure Centre back into use – and stated that it had approved funding for the project.

It has been confirmed that there is currently no reopening date for the pool.

The amount of public swimming pools in St Helens has become limited over the past decade, with Sutton's closure followed by the Parr failing to reopen after problems with the building.

As well as the pool in Newton-le-Willows, there is a council-run pool in Boundary Road, St Helens.