NEWS

IN BRIEF FIRST SWIMMERS TEST OUT LONDON’S ‘SKY POOL’ The world’s first ‘floating’ pool has welcomed swimmers above the streets of London. The Sky Pool is situated 115 feet from the ground in the Embassy Gardens development in Nine Elms, and it spans two buildings and features a completely transparent base that allows swimmers to feel as if they’re flying high above the ground. The pool isn’t officially open just yet, but will be on 19 May 2021, but the first swimmers have been in to test it, and unsurprisingly, it appears that it offers a unique experience. If you’re worried about heights, you may well want to skip a length or two in its raised waters!

NORTH YORKSHIRE SWIMMING POOL FINALLY TO RECEIVE INVESTMENT A massive £1.26m looks set to be pumped into Richmond swimming pool in North Yorkshire. This is its first major refurbishment in almost 30 years and Richmondshire District Council, will also look to agree to continue the annual running grant of £240,000 to the Richmondshire Leisure Trust. The council owns the facility but has leased it to the Trust since 2005. “This pool is a major facility for the district. People come from across Richmondshire to learn to swim with the Richmond and Dales Swimming Club,” said Leader of the Council, Councillor Angie Dale. “It is also a major asset of the councils and it’s only right that after so many years we allocate some money to bring it up to date and future proof it. With the health and wellbeing of our residents uppermost in our minds as a result of the pandemic this has never been more needed.”

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2020 Sales Surge Provides Welcome Boost For Industry

The results of the 10th annual Wet Leisure Survey produced Golden Coast have revealed some fascinating insights into how the sector performed in 2020. Not least of these was the fact that despite – or perhaps because of – the pandemic, the market remained remarkably buoyant with 87% of respondents reporting OK, good or extremely good sales. Hot tub sales in particular soared. The companies that took part in the survey saw a 30% sales increase in the hot tub market. This could be due to the population spending more time at home, with many being furloughed, during an exceptionally warm spring and summer. “Historically the weather has been the biggest influence on what kind of year we have,” said Golden Coast Managing Director Jamie Adams. “Of course, COVID and the initial lockdown impacted everything at first, but we were aided by the sunniest May on record and hottest August in 17 years. “It seems that customers were spending money on their pools and spas to make the most of their

time at home. So it stands to reason that many respondents in the Wet Leisure Survey have reported a boom in areas like installation and maintenance. In fact, above-ground pools also saw their best year ever recorded by the survey.” In terms of sales, 96% were attributed to middle and top-end product ranges, implying many customers were investing in quality. Top-end sales were most prevalent in the South East and South West. Perhaps reflecting a wider uncertainty across society, only 16% of respondents expect business conditions to be extremely good in 2021, while 39% expect them to be good, given that the same contributing factors are unlikely be repeated this year. The full Wet Leisure Survey results are available at wetleisure.com Golden Coast 01271 378100 www.goldenc.com

The ISPE Announce Training Plans For Autumn Now that the ‘roadmap’ is in play and with lockdowns easing, many people will be wanting to catch up on their training and education, and the ISPE will be announcing further details of their Seminars to be held in the Autumn/Winter of 2021. In the meantime, they can already advise that (subject to everything going to plan and with exact details still to be confirmed) there will be two ISPE events which can be reserved now. The ISPE Back-to-Basics/Revision Seminar will take place, at a central venue, probably near Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, in (hopefully) September. The event is free of charge for all ISPE Students (all other ISPE members and non-members are welcome too for a small charge of £25 and £30 respectively). Each of the four ISPE Tutors will be present to guide delegates through some typical exam questions looking at how marks may be won or lost with examples of good and not so good answers. There are refresher sessions on each of the four subjects (Heating, Chemicals, Filtration and Construction) and questions are positively encouraged.

The ISPE Hands-on Filtration Workshop will take place, probably in November, and in recent years has been held at Plastipack’s premises at St. Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex. This workshop is open to all ISPE students, members and non-members (£60 for ISPE members – all categories and £80 for nonmembers). The workshop is run by (ISPE pastPresident) Chris Carr, FISPE and (current ISPE President) Phil Barlow, FISPE, with assistance from ISPE Council member, Kim Mumford, MISPE and gives practical instruction on filter stripdown and re-building, pipe fitting, pump stripdown and re-building and in addition there are theory sessions covering pipework installation and sizing, sizing a pump, filter and pipework for a domestic pool, installation and servicing tips, and sizing equipment for commercial pools. To register your interest in either or both events, please contact the ISPE office. ISPE 01603 499959 www.ispe.co.uk

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