Since 1992 our children and community have been fortunate enough to access a swimming pool based in Kyle of Lochalsh. Hundreds of families and a second generation of children have been taught how to swim by the Leisure Centre since we opened our doors to the public.
During our closure through fire damage sustained in January this year, you’ve told us your memories of this invaluable space and the irreplaceable experiences you have had here. What all these words and experiences share, is how important it is that children and adults have somewhere they can learn to swim.
We know how much everyone involved in our community wants the pool to reopen and we now need your help to turn this into a reality, we need your financial help, we need your volunteering help and we need your fundraising help.
The recent Kyleakin to Kyle swim raised almost 18K in donations, an amazing and generous total from people invested in the Centre. Grant funding from the Highland Council has promised another £25K, a show of faith in what we are doing. All of this money will be used to upgrade and futureproof the building well into the next decade, but we still need more funding.
To make our shared vision of a resilient, modern Leisure Centre central to the fabric and well-being of our community, we have set an ambitious target of raising a further £40K .
This is ambitious, but it will allow us to replace machinery which is costly to run with plant that is more efficient. Carry out upgrade work that will make the building more the energy efficient and sustainable.
We need your help to ensure our Leisure Centre and the services it provides remains open, stays open for years to come and is better equipped to weather the storms of future unforeseen events.
In addition, we want to set up a ‘Friends of Lochalsh Leisure Centre’ group who will help the Trustees fundraise and plan for future fundraising events.
If you can make any contribution, big or small, please join our Campaign. Spread the word, donate to this campaign, get your employer involved or tell us how you can help secure and safeguard the future of this vital community asset.
If you have ideas for future fundraising events, we would love to hear from you, join our “Friends” group.
If you can volunteer, let us know, we can find ways for you to help. So, “water” you doing to help?
The Lochalsh Leisure Centre, in Kyle of Lochalsh, provides fitness and social facilities for Lochalsh, Wester Ross and South Skye. It is owned and run by the Community through the Charity the Lochalsh and Skye Swimming Pool Association.
The swimming pool opened in 1992 after a long-running campaign for facilities to teach local people to swim and was a direct result of a number of drownings in the local fishing and coastal communities.
In 1998 the Centre was expanded to provide a health suite – spa, sauna and steam room; a gym with a variety of exercise machines. In 2019 it was reroofed. There is now a modern weights area and yoga classes take place our local halls. When open, it provides facilities for many in the community, including visiting workforce and tourists alike.
It is the only such facility in our community.
* Charities pay a small fee for our service. Find out how much it is and what we do for it.
