Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the number of swimming pools closing due to high operating costs.

The Government recognises the importance of ensuring public access to swimming and leisure facilities, which are great spaces for people of all ages to stay fit and healthy.

Sport England, our Arm’s Length Body for grassroots sport, monitors facilities stock through their Active Places dataset. As of July 2026, 309 local authority swimming pools have closed since 2015 and 273 have opened.

The available data indicates that 24 of these facilities closed for financial reasons during this period.