Members of an elite swimming team have met Labour councillors who say they won't support plans to close four high school pools in Falkirk.
The council's plans to close four high school swimming pools on a phased basis will be discussed when Falkirk Council meets tomorrow (Tuesday).
Councillors Euan Stainbank and Jack Redmond say they have met with hundreds of young people, parents and coaches and have heard the same message from them all - the pools should stay open.
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On Friday, the councillors met with members of Falkirk Integrated Regional Swim Team (FIRST) - a partnership between several swimming clubs that has successfully trained swimmers to Commonwealth Games and Olympic standard.
The team trains in Grangemouth High's swimming pool, which could be the first to close if councillors agree, and they added their voices to the objections to closure.
Cllr Stainbank, who represents Falkirk South, said: “Since the proposal to close four of our school pools was brought forward Falkirk Labour have been out speaking to the people of Falkirk: poolside with our fantastic swimming clubs, at consultation events, at Parent Councils, at our surgeries and through the wealth of email correspondence folk have sent in.
"We’ve been clear throughout - we will oppose this proposal."
Cllr Jack Redmond, who represents Larbert and Bonnybridge, added: "In the recent Strategic Property Review consultation contributions on the school pools were 52 per cent of all responses and there is a petition reaching over 4000 signatures trying to keep them open - the strength of feeling is obvious.
"We’ve been campaigning with our young people, parents, clubs and our communities at large to Save our Pools and will stand with them in the council meeting on Tuesday."
On Friday evening, FIRST chair Gordon Smith told the councillors that the regional initiative to train more champion swimmers has been hugely successful since it was created in 2006, with athletes competing at district, Scottish, UK and international level.
He pointed to successes that include several Commonwealth medallists, not least Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European champion Duncan Scott.
The proposed closure of four of Falkirk's nine school swimming pools will be discussed tomorrow (Tuesday) at a meeting of Falkirk Council in Grangemouth Community Education Centre, Abbot's Road.
Falkirk Council has said the closure of the pools - Larbert High, Grangemouth High, Falkirk High and Graeme High - is vital to help bridge a spending gap of around £63 million over the next four years.
The proposal would help the council save £400,000 over four years.
The report states that Falkirk has the third highest number of swimming pools per head of population in the country, behind only West Lothian and Stirling.
The council also says that closing the pools would also result in an estimated reduction of approximately 766 tonnes of CO2 emissions, which represents an overall gas and electricity energy saving for the Council of around five per cent.
The report to be heard by councillors tomorrow proposes closing Grangemouth High School's pool first, in August this year, then the others from August 2024.
It was due to be heard at the council meeting in March but was delayed due to unforseen circumstances.
Before that meeting, the Conservative group on Falkirk Council also said it will not support any closures.
In January, Cllr James Bundy, Economic Development spokesperson for the Falkirk Conservatives, said: “We have come to this conclusion after listening carefully to the well-articulated views of parents, pupils, teachers, and community users who use these swimming pools."
