Govt plans to offer free swimming for all by 2012
LONDON (AFP) — England's swimming pools will have free admission by 2012 in an effort to get more people involved in sports before the Olympic Games, the government will announce Friday.
People aged over 60 will be the first group to be given free admission to public pools as part of the 80 million pound initiative. The scheme will then be extended to anyone aged under 16, before the abolition of admission charges by 2012.
Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Andy Burnham told the Daily Mirror that free admission for over-60s was only the first step.
"The big vision here is that in the same way that museums and galleries were made free we want, in a focused and progressive way, to remove entry charges for swimming," he said.
"The big picture here is getting free universal swimming by 2012. This is a real Labour policy -- getting people to take part in sport which is good for them and good for the country."
Local authorities will receive funds of 80 million pounds next year to scrap pool charges for over-60s, and 50 million pounds for the pools' upkeep.
There is already free admission to public swimming pools in Wales.
