December 4th, 2022Splashing out: council offers free entry to pools
The chance to cool off in public pools throughout Hepburn Shire – should the weather warrant it – will be free this summer season.
The pool season opened over the weekend with the council again offering free entry to its public pools, pleasing locals who love to do laps or simply chill.
But the pool season will be a little different this year due a sector-wide shortage of aquatics staff which will initially reduce pool operating hours.
“We would love for more people to put up their hand and apply for a job with our Aquatics Team
so we can extend the hours of operation of our local pools,” said Bradley Thomas, Council’s Chief
Executive Officer.
“We’re really keen to have more people join our team to give our community the best
opportunity to cool off over summer.
“While lifeguards need to have certain qualifications, there are customer-facing roles such as
Community Pool Assistants, where you interact and connect with patrons, without the need for
pool qualifications.
“I encourage anyone who is interested in taking on one of these important roles to visit our
Council website and apply now.”
Free access to Shire pools ties directly to the Council Plan, where Council aims to create a
healthy, supported and empowered community. Council is investing $500,000 in the costs of
swimming pools in 2022/23, including staffing, maintenance, water and operational costs, along
with $578,000 in capital improvements following the adoption of the Aquatics Strategy earlier
this year.
Mayor, Cr Brian Hood, said that the community told us that access to quality aquatic facilities is
important to them, and Council has listened.
“We are investing over $1 million this financial year in our aquatic facilities,” he said.
“Although limited due to staffing resources, we are aiming to make the opening hours suitable
for family and recreation use and will keep on reviewing and assessing the hours throughout the
pool season. We will extend these hours where we can,” he said.
Pool opening hours are:
• Weekends – 2- 6pm
• Weekdays during school term – 3-7pm
• Weekdays during school holidays – 2-6pm
The council operates a weather policy at the pools. This means Trentham and Daylesford pools open
on days predicted to be 21+ degrees based on the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) predictions for
Ballarat. Clunes Pool opens on days predicted to be 21+ degrees based on BOM predictions for
Bendigo.
Changes to the planned hours will be advertised on Council’s Facebook page.
