The Mayor of Hackney Jules Pipe has announced that thousands of residents can continue to swim for free at Hackney’s leisure centres, despite the Government’s plans to axe the grant to councils which funds part of the scheme.

Hackney Council is determined to continue its free swimming programme for all under-18s and over-60s, although the Government’s funding which covered part of the cost will stop at the end of this month. The Council is committed to providing free swimming to older and young people in the borough.

Mayor Pipe said: “Residents aged 60 and over, plus under 18s, can swim for free all year round in Hackney. This is a popular programme and we are determined to keep it going for as long as we can.

"We are committed to providing affordable swimming facilities for all Hackney residents and later this year we will launch a major consultation with residents about swimming in Hackney to find out local people’s priorities for use of our facilities, and work out the best ways that we can promote and encourage swimming activities for everyone who lives here.”

Local pools participating in the free swimming scheme are Kings Hall Leisure Centre, Britannia Leisure Centre, and Clissold Leisure Centre. GLL, a not-for-profit leisure operator, manage the centres for Hackney Council.

For more information visit the Hackney Council website: www.hackney.gov.uk or the GLL website: www.gll.org