Please enter your registration number on the tablets in reception whenever you are at the pool
- Select “visitor – 4 hours”
- Select “agree and proceed”
- Enter your vehicle registration number and select “next”
- Check that you have entered your registration number correctly
- Select “confirm” if your registration number is correct or “back” if you need to correct it
- The screen then says “Thank you your vehicle has been registered”
Please remember the following when you enter your registration number at the pool:
- Check you have entered your registration number correctly, it is easy to miss a letter or a digit or to get some of them the wrong way round
- Also make sure you use numbers rather than letters (e.g. Zero for a number not the letter O).
- Make sure you see the “Thank you your vehicle number is registered” before you finish using the tablet.
- If you are unsure whether you have got it right, please do it again
- If you have changed your car, or are coming in a different vehicle to normal, such as a courtesy car, please remember to enter the correct registration number
- If you forget to enter your registration number when you arrive at the pool you can do this any time before you leave the pool.
If you receive a parking fine notice, please contact the pool reception in person, by phone on 0191 4329444 or by email to info@birtleycommunitypool.org.uk. Please give us your name, your contact details, the date and times shown on your parking fine letter time and the registration number of the vehicle in the photo on the letter.
We will help you to get the parking fine reduced to £20.00 and in some cases we may be able to help you get the fine cancelled, such as where a simple error has been made like miskeying your registration number.
BCAC Annual Report
Financial update and price changes from September 7th 2026
On 16th September 2026, we will be celebrating the end of our second year of running Birtley Community Pool. We are delighted that so many people from Birtley and the surrounding areas are coming to the pool on a regular basis, to enjoy the benefits of swimming and other water-based activities like aquafit, the fun inflatables and water slide sessions and swimming lessons.
Unfortunately, we now need to make a small increase to some of our prices. We want to be completely open with our community about why this is necessary, and the information below explains the challenges we have faced, the steps we are taking to keep Birtley Community Pool thriving for the long term and sets out the new prices which will be from September 7th 2026.
Our challenge to make Birtley Community Pool financially sustainable
We knew from the start that achieving financial sustainability for the pool would be a huge challenge, as this was the reason why Gateshead Council closed the pool in July 2023. The council had made significant operating losses at Birtley Swimming Centre for many years, including a loss of £349,000 in the year to 31st March 2020, which was the last year that the pool was running with normal opening hours prior to COVID 19.
Reminder of the significant loss we made in our first year of operation
From opening up in mid-September 2024 to the end of March 2025, we made a large operating loss of £69,000 from our trading activities in just over six months, with our monthly losses averaging £10,600. These initial losses were higher than we expected, and they were only partly covered by funds we had raised in advance. However, additional generous personal donations were made by some supporters and from other sources to cover the additional losses.
Improved financial performance in our second year of operation
In our second year of trading to the end of March 2026, we have made significant progress to achieving financial sustainability, resulting in a much-reduced trading loss of £19,100 over a full 12-month period, with monthly losses averaging £1,600. Our Trustees Annual Report and accounts are now available on our website and provide lots of detail about our financial performance in the 25/26 year. It also includes information about the following:
- The time contributed by our trustees and volunteers to make the pool successful.
- Details about our financial and non-financial achievements
- What we do to ensure our pool is inclusive and affordable
- Our organisation structure and governance.
How have we been able to improve our financial results so much?
This significant improvement has mainly been achieved by increasing customer footfall, as well as the impact of the 10% price increase, we introduced in September last year. The percentage increases in income set out below are from comparing the income received between October 2025 and March 2026 with the income received between October 2024 and March 2025,
- Membership income has increased by 85%. We had 43 members in October 2024 just after we reopened the pool. This grew to 141 by March 2025 and reached 180 by March 2026.
- Income has increased across most of our public swimming activities, including adult swims (21%), child swims (19%) and family swims (29%). This reflects increasing customer footfall and the 10% price increase in September 2025.
- Income from school swimming lessons has increased by 15%
- Pool hire income has increased by 12%, mainly reflecting the 10% price increase in September 2025
- Income from vending machine sales has increased by 117% reflecting increasing customer footfall and the installation of the vending machines in December 2024. This has been partly offset by a 60% increase in the cost of vending machine stock.
We are very grateful to our customers for supporting us through our first two years, which have been very challenging financially. We have listened to your feedback and made improvements to make the customer experience better. The growth in our customer numbers is partly due to the great reviews that you give us on google review that encourage new customers to come. It is also because you have encouraged your friends and family to come along to the pool for swimming activities and lessons.
Changes in our operating costs
We have also been working hard to reduce our costs where this can be done without compromising the quality of service we provide to our customers.
The percentage changes in operating costs set out below are from comparing expenditure between October 2025 and March 2026 with expenditure between October 2024 and March 2025
- Our chemical costs have been reduced by 25% due to changing the way we manage the pH level in the pool water. We now use sodium bisulphate for this, which is less expensive than using carbon dioxide
- Our gas costs have been reduced by 22% due to installing insulation on most of our pipework and the heat exchangers and fitting draught proofing measures on doors and windows. This work has been done by volunteers and staff members at no additional cost and the materials cost has been less than £500.
- Our materials and equipment costs have been reduced by 29% as we had to purchase many new items to enable us to run the pool in the 24/25 year which we have not needed to replace in 25/26.
- Repairs and maintenance costs have been reduced by 50% by using appropriately skilled trustees, volunteers and pool management to make many of the repairs free of charge, rather than contractors
These savings have more than offset a 4% increase in our employment costs due to the deferred NJC pay rise which we implemented in September 2025.
Remaining challenge to achieve financial sustainability
Whilst we have made great progress in the 25/26 financial year towards achieving a sustainable financial position, which means our income covering our costs on an ongoing basis, we still have some way to go. We made a loss of £19,100 in the year to 31st March 2026, and this included £18,000 of one-off grants, without which our loss would have been £37,100.
We are implementing a range of further improvements which should help us close this financial gap in the current financial year to 31st March 2027. These include the following changes which will improve our financial performance by £51,000:
- Increased pool hire from Swim City (£11,000), Derwentside and Gateshead Swim team (£3,000) and another new private hire customer (£2,000). These increases in pool hire will have minimal impact on the pool availability for public swimming, because of the times and days when this additional pool hire will take place.
- Increasing the prices we charge for pool hire to Swim City, Derwentside and Gateshead Swim Team, Birtley Swimming club and our other pool hire customers by about 4% from September 2026, which will increase our income by about £5,000 in the rest of the year
- Growth in customer footfall across our public swimming activities, which will increase our income by £6,000, reflecting the growth achieved in the first four months of 2026.
- Increasing the prices we charge for public swimming activities by between 4% and 6% from September 2026, which will increase our income by about £6,000 in the rest of the year
- Increased income from memberships of £4000, reflecting the growth in our members in the first four months of 2026.
- A reduction of £3,000 in our chemical costs due to the full year effect of the change in how we control the pH level in the pool which was implemented in September 2025
- A reduction of £4,000 in our electricity costs due to lower unit prices in our new contract which started on 1st July 2026
- A reduction in our gas costs of £3,000 due to the full year impact of the insulation and draught proofing work we carried out in late 2025
- A reduction in our insurance costs of £4,000 due to achieving a reduced cost from a new insurer following our insurance renewal process in May.
Costs will also increase by £13,500 in the 26/27 year in two areas:
- Our employment costs will increase by £11,500 due to the impact of the NJC pay rises in September 2025 (which was deferred from April 2025) and April 2026
- Our costs for planned cyclical maintenance will increase by £2,000 due to some additional contracts we have put in place to ensure all our assets are sufficiently maintained
The net impact of the above financial changes is an improvement of £37,500 on the 26/27 year, which just exceeds the adjusted loss we made of £37,000 referred to above for the 25/26 year. This improvement should result in the pool achieving a break-even financial result in the 26/27 year, with our income just covering our costs.
We will be increasing our prices from Monday 7th September 2026
We are increasing most of our pay as you go prices by an average of 5% in September 2026 to increase our income, so that it will help us to cover our rising operating costs going forward. The impact on individual session prices is not significant, as you can see from the table in the next section.
Our adult swimming session price will increase by 30p to £5.80 and our junior and infant swimming prices by 20p to £5.20 (inflatables), £3.50 (4 to 15 years) and £1.20 (under 3 years). Our family swimming prices will increase by between 50p and £1.00, depending on the family group. Our discounted adult swim price for weekday afternoons will increase by 20p to £4.20.
We have compared our prices to the prices charged by other nearby pools for similar activities, and we are confident that where we have decided to increase prices, we will still be competitive. We are not increasing our aquafit prices or our monthly membership prices, to ensure these prices are still competitive with other nearby pools.
Birtley Community Pool prices from 7th September 2026
The new prices are shown on the table below, together with the existing prices and the percentage increase for each type of activity
| Activity type |
Birtley Community Pool current price |
Birtley Community Pool price from 7th September 2025 |
% increase |
| Adult swim |
£5.50 |
£5.80 |
5.4% |
| Adult swim 12pm to 4pm weekdays |
£4.00 |
£4.20 |
5.0% |
| Junior swim |
£3.30 |
£3.50 |
6.0% |
| Infant swim under 4 years |
£1.00 |
£1.20 |
20.0% |
| Adult inflatable and slide family fun |
£5.50 |
£5.80 |
5.4% |
| Junior inflatable and slide family fun |
£5.00 |
£5.20 |
4.0% |
| Adult and junior family fun – member |
£4.50 |
£4.70 |
4.4% |
| Family Swim 2 adults & 2 children |
£15.50 |
£16.50 |
6.4% |
| Family Swim 2 adults & 1 child |
£13.00 |
£13.70 |
5.4% |
| Family Swim 1 adult & 2 children |
£10.00 |
£10.50 |
5.0% |
| Aquafit |
£7.50 |
£7.50 |
0.0% |
| Aquafit member |
£5.00 |
£5.00 |
0.0% |
| Aquafit block of ten |
£68.00 |
£68.00 |
0.0% |
| Aquafit member block of ten |
£45.00 |
£45.00 |
0.0% |
| Pool parties with inflatables & waterslide |
£275.00 |
£290.00 |
5.4% |
| Pool parties with inflatables or waterslide |
£215.00 |
£225.00 |
4.6% |
| Membership – adult |
£30.00 |
£30.00 |
0.0% |
| Membership – junior |
£22.00 |
£22.00 |
0.0% |
| Membership – 1 adults 1 child |
£44.00 |
£44.00 |
0.0% |
| Membership – 1 adults 2 children |
£66.00 |
£66.00 |
0.0% |
| Membership – 2 adults 1 child |
£71.00 |
£71.00 |
0,0% |
| Membership – 2 adults 2 children |
£93.00 |
£93.00 |
0.0% |
| Membership – 2 adults 3 children |
£115.00 |
£115.00 |
0.0% |
| Membership – 2 adults 4 children |
£137.00 |
£137.00 |
0.0% |
We appreciate that increasing prices is not ideal, but we believe that this is necessary to ensure the pool is financially sustainable and remains open for the future. We hope that you will still come to the pool after we have increased our prices, to continue enjoying the benefits of swimming in your local community run pool.
BCAC Charity Commission Page
Yvonne Probert – chair Matthew Grant – treasurer
On behalf of the Birtley Community Aquatic Centre Trustee Board
July/August 2026 Newsletter
Issue 26
Summer at Birtley Community Pool
The summer holidays are almost here, and we’ve got lots planned to help you make the most of your visit to Birtley Community Pool. Alongside our summer holiday timetable, extra slide sessions and inflatable fun, we’re also sharing updates on how we’ve responded to customer feedback, celebrating another fantastic fundraising achievement by one of our volunteers, and highlighting a few important reminders!
Feedback & Suggestions
We always welcome customer feedback and regularly review suggestions to see where improvements can be made. Here’s what we’ve been working on.
Evening Slide Sessions Return This Summer
Many customers asked if we could bring back evening slide sessions, so we’re delighted to announce they’re returning during the summer holidays.
20 July – 9 August
- Mondays: 8:00pm-9:30pm
- Wednesdays: 6:00pm-8:00pm
10 August – 30 August
- Monday to Thursday: 6:00pm-8:00pm
We hope these additional sessions give more families the opportunity to enjoy the slide during the holidays.
Specialist and Dedicated Swimming Sessions
We’ve received enquiries about specialist and dedicated swimming sessions for people with hidden disabilities and their carers. While we don’t currently offer dedicated sessions, we’re committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming experience for everyone during our public swims.
If you’re looking for a quieter swim – for example, to support autism, sensory sensitivities, SEND, young children, older adults, or a calmer environment – we recommend visiting Monday to Friday, 8:30am–12:30pm, when the pool is usually at its quietest. During these times, both the baby pool and our 1-metre improver pool are available.
If you would like to discuss any specific needs, please speak to one of our Lead Leisure Attendants (wearing blue shirts). We’ll do our best to support you and can also signpost you to other local pools that offer dedicated specialist sessions if they’re more suitable.
Specialist groups can also hire the pool for private bookings on Friday evenings (after 4pm during school holidays or after 7pm during term time) and Saturdays after 4pm. If you’re interested, we’d be happy to hear from you.
Thank you for your continued feedback. It helps us improve our services and make them as inclusive and accessible as possible for everyone.
Nimbus Access Card
Carers for customers who have a Nimbus Access Card are entitled to free admission. The card holder will need to pay the normal price for their swim and the carer/s swim for free.
Apply on www.accesscard.online
Become a Trustee
We’re looking for new Trustees to join the charity board — especially individuals with experience in community engagement, volunteer management and / or marketing. If you’re passionate about community projects and want to help shape the future of Birtley Community Pool, we’d love to hear from you!
Email: info@birtleycommunitypool.org.uk
Volunteers Needed
Whether you have a few spare hours or can commit to a couple of hours a week, your support will help us continue providing excellent services to the community.
We are currently recruiting for the following volunteer roles:
- Practical Tasks Volunteers
- Administration & Reception Volunteers
- Fundraising & Income Generation Volunteers
If you’d like to get involved, please email us at info@birtleycommunitypool.org.uk
Your time and effort will be invaluable in supporting the pool’s success!
We’d Love Your Feedback
Whether you’ve learned to swim, improved your health, met new friends or simply enjoy visiting us each week, we’d love to hear your story.
We’re looking to feature testimonials from our customers across our website, newsletters and social media to help demonstrate the impact our community pool has on local people.
If you’d be happy to share your experience, please complete our online testimonial form.
Thank you for helping us tell the story of our community pool.
Enjoy the Sunshine
If you’re planning to relax outside before or after your swim this summer, we’ll have blankets available to borrow from reception.
Feel free to grab one, head onto the grass and enjoy the sunshine while making the most of your visit.
Photography Reminder
To help protect the privacy of all our customers, please do not take photographs or videos inside the pool hall and changing village.
We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in helping us provide a safe and welcoming environment for everyone.
Paul’s Four Lakes Challenge
Back in May we shared that one of our volunteers, Paul Snaith, had taken on the incredible challenge of swimming four Lake District lakes to raise vital funds for our community-run pool.
We’re delighted to share that Paul has now completed three of the four swims.
After successfully swimming Derwentwater and Coniston Water, Paul completed the challenging 7.6-mile Ullswater end-to-end swim on Sunday 5th July.
The swim had originally been planned for Saturday but was postponed due to strong winds and poor weather conditions. Although the first half of the swim was completed in relatively calm conditions, the weather soon changed, leaving Paul to battle strong winds and choppy waves for the remaining 3.6 miles.
Despite the difficult conditions, Paul completed the full 7.6-mile swim in an incredible 4 hours and 50 minutes.
Paul now has just one final challenge remaining:
- ✅ Derwentwater
- ✅ Coniston Water
- ✅ Ullswater
- Windermere (September)
We’re incredibly proud of Paul’s determination and commitment to supporting Birtley Community Pool. His challenge perfectly reflects the community spirit that keeps our charity-run pool thriving.
If you’d like to support Paul’s fundraising challenge, every donation, large or small, helps us continue providing affordable swimming and community programmes for local people – https://gofund.me/8a822e77c
Timetable Updates
This summer we’ll be running two separate holiday timetables:
Timetable 1: Mon 20th Jul – Sun 9th Aug
Summer Timetable 1
Timetable 2: Mon 10th Aug– Sun 30th Aug
Summer Timetable 2
Slide Sessions
20 July – 9 August
- Monday-Friday: 8:30am-10:00am
- Monday: 8:00pm-9:30pm
10 August – 30 August
- Tuesday & Thursday: 6:00pm-8:00pm
Lily Pad Sessions (Improver Pool – under 5s)
20 July – 9 August
- Tuesday & Thursday: 1:30pm-4:00pm
- Wednesday: 6:00pm-8:00pm
- Saturday & Sunday: 9:00am-1:00pm
10 August – 30 August
- Monday-Friday: 8:30am-11:00am
- Tuesday & Thursday: 1:30pm-4:00pm
- Monday & Wednesday: 6:00pm-8:00pm
- Saturday & Sunday: 9:00am-1:00pm
Double Inflatable Sessions (+slide)
- Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays – 12:30pm & 2:30pm
- Saturdays – 1:30pm & 2:45pm
- Sundays – 1:30pm
Classes
- Aquafit: Tue 12:15/12pm (Main Pool)
- NEW Aquafit: Tue 7:15pm (Improver Pool)
- Aquafit: Wed 9am (Main Pool)
- AquaIntro: Thu 7pm (Improver Pool)
Summer Updates
Summer Holiday Swim Offer for 16-19 Year Olds
This summer holiday, we’re extending our £3.30 junior swim price to include 16 to 19-year-olds.
Usually available for children aged 4–15, this reduced price will now apply to everyone aged 4–19 throughout the school summer holidays. We hope this encourages more young people to stay active, have fun and enjoy swimming in a safe environment.
Please note that this offer does not apply to Inflatable Fun sessions. Prices for these remain £5.00 for children aged 4–15 and £5.50 for anyone aged 16 and over.
Swim Camp
From 20 July to 7 August, Swim City will be running Holiday Swim Camps for up to 80 local children each day. As a result, all three pools will be reserved between 10:00am and 12:00pm, and public swimming will not be available during these times.
Each day begins with swimming lessons at Birtley Community Pool, followed by an hour of fun water activities. The children then enjoy lunch and arts and crafts in a local church hall, with the camp finishing at 2:00pm.
The camps include 65 funded places for eligible children through the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme, delivered in partnership with the local council. There are also 15 paid places available each day at £20 per child.
To book a paid place, visit the Swim City website, select “Book Now”, then choose “Crash Courses” under the Birtley Community Pool section.
If you usually swim between 10:00am and 12:00pm on weekdays, don’t worry!
During these three weeks, there will be additional public swimming sessions available from 4:00pm onwards, as Swim City’s regular swimming lessons finish for the summer holidays on 19th July.
Donations
Help Us Make a Splash!
We’re now fundraising for solar panels, and your support can make a big difference! Donations are gratefully received via our GoFundMe page: www.gofundme.com/f/please-help-us-get-solar-panels-for-birtley-community-pool
