Market Drayton swimming pool to get almost £250,000 investment

Changing room facilities at Market Drayton swimming and fitness centre are set for a major overhaul thanks to a funding boost of £248,667 from Sport England.

The cash is part of an investment of more than £700,000 from Sport England’s new Improvement Fund, funded by the National Lottery, to improve sports facilities across the West Midlands.

With three quarters of people citing the quality of the pitch surface and the changing rooms as being important to their sporting experience, Sport England is investing £789,067 to improve these facilities for the benefit of thousands of people. 

Sport England Property Director, Charles Johnston, said:

“As the research shows people have a better experience of sport when the facilities are good both on and off the pitch.  These investments on artificial grass pitches and swimming pool changing rooms will have a big impact on sport in local communities.”

Successful bidders to the fund include Shropshire Council, which has received £248,667 to refurbish the 20-year-old changing rooms at Market Drayton swimming and fitness centre, which is run by the Shropshire Community Leisure Trust.

The changing rooms are tired and dated and don’t meet the standards of what people expect in modern-day leisure changing facilities.

Peter Davis, principal leisure facilities manager at Shropshire Council, said:

“This is wonderful news, as we have been well aware that the changing facilities needed upgrading.  The money will be spent on a complete overhaul of the changing rooms to give a much improved experience for customers, and work is due to start later in the year.

“Along with the additional capital funding that Shropshire Community Leisure Trust has already invested, these improvements will really make the centre a facility for Shropshire to be proud of.”

Brian Taylor, Chairman of Shropshire Community Leisure Trust, added:

“We are delighted that the council has been awarded lottery funding to transform the changing facilities at Market Drayton swimming and fitness centre.  The pool is well used by the local community and this money will make a real difference. We hope that these improvements will attract even more visitors to the centre.”

Between now and 2017, Sport England will invest £45 million of lottery funding through the Improvement Fund into medium-sized projects to improve grassroots sport facilities. Changing rooms and artificial grass pitches were chosen for the first round after they were identified by Sport England as improvements that could have an immediate impact on the number of people playing sport within a community.