By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter
The leader of Nottingham City Council incorrectly said pool temperatures had been lowered during a council meeting.
Speaking during a scrutiny committee meeting on November 9, Cllr David Mellen (Lab), who also represents the Dales ward, said: “I think there is a huge element of the budget which is inflation-based.
“Fuel costs are having a varying effect so clearly, when we do things like running swimming pools, we have slightly changed the temperature of the pools.
“We have received people saying ‘it’s too cold in your pools’, so you know there is a balance there because you still want people to use your facilities but we don’t want to heat things more than we need to.”
The Local Democracy Reporting Service, which accurately reported on the meeting at the time, now understands this was incorrect.
It is thought it had been discussed before the public meeting, but temperatures had not been lowered.
Cllr Mellen had a conversation with leisure service bosses at some point before the meeting, where a range of energy-saving measures had been put on the table, including lowering pool temperatures, but this was not acted upon.
The Labour-run authority’s leader said the temperatures had led to complaints from swimmers who said the pools were “too cold”, but it is understood this had been a mix-up with a separate issue.
Active Nottingham, which is part of the council, runs several leisure centres across the city which have pools.
According to Active Nottingham’s website, pool temperatures for large pools sit between 29C and 30C while smaller pools are typically between 31C and 32C, depending on the centre.
The council reaffirmed temperatures have not been adjusted as part of energy-saving measures.
