Any attempt to find the missing community facility that is most wanted in South Woodham Ferrers will identify the swimming pool as the number one item. (It may be because the residents have been told so often that they want a swimming pool that this is usually the only thing that they can think of at short notice)

Being surrounded on three sides by water and having so many kids here does create a need for somewhere for the kids to learn how to swim. Also having a generally younger, more active, population suggests that a lesiure pool would be well used.

When talking about the South Woodham swimming pool in Council I always take pains to point out that I am talking about a pool IN South Woodham and not a pool FOR South Woodham. Some Councillors justify their opposition (to themselves at least) on the grounds that this is some selfish demand by a people of South Woodham for their own private pool.

Although a swimming pool built in South Woodham Ferrers would obviously attract a lot of people from South Woodham, it would also be used be the people of Danbury and the other villages to the south of Chelmsford. It would also attract swimmers from throughout the Dengie Peninsular and the Wickford area.

Because of the planning protection given to the countryside to the south of Chelmsford, South Woodham is the only place where any large leisure facilities could be built !

Why haven't we got one ?

All of the political parties on Chelmsford Borough Council will tell you that they have a policy to provide a swimming pool in South Woodham when all they have is a policy to SAY that they will provide a swimming pool in South Woodham.

Neither of the two parties (Liberal & Conservative) who have been in control of the Borough have provided us with a swimming pool - just reasons why we can't have one "this year".

* * *

There are still a lot of people in South Woodham who think that the reason that we don't have a pool in South Woodham is that we haven't asked Chelmsford Borough to provide one. That if they get some signatures on a petition asking for a pool, then one will appear.

It's not that simple !

Every Councillor in Chelmsford knows that we want a swimming pool in South Woodham.

Every survey of recreational needs has identified the need for a pool in South Woodham.