So we just can’t keep it a secret anymore!
We have been working with Swim Ireland on a very exciting project for the last few months and we are delighted to finally be able to tell you about it!
We are planning to bring a portable swimming pool to Blessington for a 12 week period this September!
Swim Ireland have brought two portable 12 x 4 metre swimming pools to Ireland with the aim of making swimming accessible for everyone especially in locations where there are no swimming facilities at present. These pools are fully heated, sit above ground and have a ramp, steps and a hoist to ensure they are accessible for all. Each pool is housed in a hard sided marquee which is also heated and contains two dressing rooms.
Our aim is to bring the pool to Blessington in September to coincide with the schools returning so that we can give as many children the opportunity to learn to swim as possible. We have already had a very positive response from the Primary schools across West Wicklow and we will be contacting the Secondary Schools and Early Years Playschools and Montessoris in the following days to ask for their input and invite them to be involved.
Once we have everything confirmed we will also be contacting community groups and sports clubs about how their members can benefit from this project.
An important aspect of this project is to ensure that it is accessible and affordable for everyone. We will be working closely with Swim Ireland to make sure that this is the case. It is our hope that in the future we would be able to expand this project throughout West Wicklow.
The portable pool project is also an opportunity for us to demonstrate and highlight the very real need for the provision of swimming facilities here in West Wicklow. We feel that the portable pool will be very popular during its 12 weeks in Blessington and that a large and diverse group of people from across our community will use it. Being able to prove this increase in participation in sport is crucial for any future Department of Sport funding applications towards our permanent swimming pool and sports complex.
We will be making a joint presentation with Swim Ireland about the portable pool project to Wicklow County Council at the next Baltinglass Municipal District meeting on February 28th.
We really appreciate the support that our community has shown us since we started this campaign in 2018 and we are delighted to be able to say that WE ARE BRINGING A POOL TO WEST WICKLOW!
