Town rallies to support letter of complaint over Bo'ness Recreation Centre closure

And thanks to that support, at the council meeting last Wednesday, they handed in their letter of complaint – containing 5500 signatures and addresses of people who are backing them.

The handover took place as news filtered through that a report, which first mooted that the rec centre’s pool needed urgent repairs five years ago, had only now resurfaced. Campaigners, therefore, were taking no chances in the letters going amiss.

Activist Christine Somerville said: “We had hoped to hand it over to an official but in the end we had to hand it over to a receptionist; several councillors saw us but refused to look at or speak to us.

“The number of signatures and letters submitted to the council clearly shows how the people of Bo’ness are feeling about the decision to close the rec centre.

“People are rightly angry that the decision was so quickly taken and acted upon, without a clear plan for leisure services in the town.

“So many people took the time to sign the complaint letter; we can’t thank everyone enough for their continued support.

“It remains to be seen whether the council replies to everyone who signed the letter and gave their address; it’s a waiting game to see how they respond.”

With the rec centre pool closed last month amid safety concerns, swimming sessions have been laid on at the Academy during the Easter holidays for local children.

However, many groups that use the pool – such as the Sub Aqua Club which has been based at the rec centre for 46 years – feel they’ve been left high and dry.

Active Forth classes and Les Mills exercise classes have been moved to Bo’ness Town Hall – minus changing and shower facilities.

Christine said: “While the council has found other venues for some classes, it’s not ideal and, of course, there’s no pool so people who want to take part in Active Forth sessions in the pool will still have to travel to Grangemouth.

“It’s like they’re trying to cover the anger and hurt people here feel with a sticking plaster approach to health and well-being.”

Campaigners were also not surprised by the announcement made last Thursday that the centre would be closing earlier each day from Saturday, March 30 – Falkirk Council said it was to help its staff find new jobs.

In a social media post, the council stated: “As a result of supporting our staffing teams at Bo'ness Recreation Centre in gaining future employment within Falkirk Council, we are having to adapt our closing times slightly.

“We have tried to minimise these changes and often it is a 30 minute earlier closure at night, so we hope this will lessen the impact.”

On Monday, Thursday and Friday the centre will be open from 6.30am to 9pm; Tuesday and Wednesday from 6.30am to 9.30pm; and on Saturday and Sunday from 8am to 4pm.

It was yet another blow for campaigners on top of the pool closure and the decision on January 31 to close the centre for good, as of Friday, May 3.

That decision was taken after the council said it would cost too much to bring the building up to standard.