A community group who came together to save their local swimming pool are in a race against time to raise tens of thousands of pounds - after their plans to save it were hit by a massive energy bill rise. The volunteers from the Friends of the Jubilee Pool have been working tirelessly for more than two years to put together an organisation to take over the running of the pool, after Bristol City Council pulled the funding plug and said the pool would close if no one came forward to take it on.
But with just a few weeks to go before the group was set to take over, a new energy bill arrived. The increase in energy bills has meant the cost of running and heating the pool could increase from £120,000 to £330,000.
The increase has caused the pool operator who agreed to run the pool for them to pull out, with the deadline for handover of September 30 looming. Now, the Friends of Jubilee Pool are in a race against time to raise around £30,000 to at least keep the pool open for the winter, with existing operating company Parkwood offering to keep going for the time being.
