half term is here but there’s good news for families this February half-term as Westmorland and Furness Council’s leisure centres are offering 10p swims for children.
Young people aged under 16 will be able to take advantage of the special offer at the council’s swimming pools in Penrith, Appleby, Barrow-in-Furness, Dalton-in-Furness, Kendal and Ulverston.
Each leisure centre will allocate 2 hours per day for 10p swims during February half-term from Monday 12 February to Friday 16 February 2024.
At Penrith leisure centre, 10p swims will also be available for 2 hours per day on Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 February 2024.
Councillor Dyan Jones, Cabinet Member for Customer and Waste Services, whose portfolio includes sport and leisure, said: “Supporting active, healthy and happy lives is one of our priorities as a caring council, as well as supporting people in need and reducing inequality.
““Swimming is one of the healthiest activities that children can take part in and it’s an important life skill, especially in an area like ours with so many lakes and rivers.
“We hope these 10p swims will encourage our young people to be active over February half-term as well as supporting families with the cost of living crisis. Many residents are having to make difficult day-to-day decisions and leisure activities may be a luxury that some parents simply cannot afford. Hopefully this half-term holiday discount will enable lots of youngsters to enjoy a swim without putting too much strain on the family budget.”
The scheme has been approved by the council’s three Locality Boards for Eden, Furness and South Lakeland at a cost of around £11,000.
The Eden Locality Board Chair Councillor John Murray said: “We were delighted to give this offer the go-ahead. Our fantastic leisure operator GLL are looking forward to welcoming hundreds of young swimmers through their doors this February half-term.
“For families who’ve never visited one of our leisure centres, this is the ideal way to discover the range of activities they offer as well as the reduced-cost packages that help to make membership more affordable.”
The February half-term 10p swims are in addition to the council’s Holiday and Activity Food Programme which offers free activities over the Easter, summer and Christmas holidays to children of families supported by benefits-related free school meals.
Bookings for Penrith must be made through the Better UK app under Swim For All sessions.
Penrith Leisure Centre Times for the 10p sessions are:
Monday: 1pm to 3pm
Tuesday: 10am to 12 noon
Wednesday: 10am to 12 noon
Thursday: 10.30am to 12.30pm
Friday: 1pm to 3pm
Saturday: 1pm to 3pm
Sunday: 1pm to 3pm
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