Residents in one area of Cardiff will face yet more delays after waiting over five years for their local swimming pool to reopen after the first Covid-19 lockdown. While the leisure centre has partially reopened, for many locals the pool is the main attraction.
When building work began at the start of this year the council announced it was expected to finish at the end of 2025 but this latest setback means it now won’t open until June 2026, over six years after it first shut.
Cardiff Council said several issues which “could not have been anticipated” were identified when work began and have therefore caused delays. Never miss a Cardiff story by signing up to our daily newsletter here.
Local councillor Joe Carter called the latest news “disappointing” saying that the community deserves better having been without a pool for over six years by the time work is finished.
The council did however stress that good progress is now being and said the steelwork which supports the pool has been installed and the concrete pouring is due to take place next week.
The leisure centre closed in March 2020 and was subsequently used as a vaccination centre and as a training base for Cardiff Rugby.
After the rugby club vacated the centre last year, in summer 2024 part of the leisure centre reopened to the public but the pool, which many residents believe has always been the focal point of the facility, remained closed.
At the start of 2025, plans were finalised for a new pool and work commenced on a the 25-metre pool which will feature an adaptable, moving floor and a new children’s wet play area for interactive and social play.
A Cardiff Council spokesperson said: “The refurbishment of Pentwyn Leisure Centre is scheduled for completion in June 2026, in accordance with the 70-week programme agreed with the contractor in March this year.
“During the course of the works, several issues were identified that required remediation. These included rusted steel elements in the ground, foundation concrete columns needing underpinning, and contaminated materials removed from the site.
“As is common with building developments, such issues could not have been anticipated and only became evident as the refurbishment progressed. Good progress is now being made: the new steelwork to support the pool has been installed, and concrete pouring is taking place this week.”
Rhian Vernall, who helped set up the Save Pentwyn Leisure Centre group said this latest delay was frustrating for the community, adding that she feels there has been a lack of communication since the last engagement session on the project.
She continued: “Decisions have been made without adequate consultation, which has further heightened our frustration. While we remain frustrated, we are also hopeful that we will eventually gain full access to the centre, including the long-awaited swimming pool.”
Liberal Democrat councillor for Pentwyn and Llanedeyrn, Joe Carter said: “It is disappointing that the council is pushing back the completion date for the Pentwyn Leisure Centre refurbishment yet again. Our community has been without a pool for 5 years already and it will be over six years by the time this is finished.
“It is great to see work under way and construction taking place, but it should never taken this long to have get started.
“Pentwyn was the only leisure centre not reopened when COVID restrictions eased and the only one to have our pool closed down.
“My community deserves better and I will keep fighting for the promised refurbishment to be delivered.”
