Bracknell Pools to be Fitted with CCTV

Underwater cameras to be used at Bracknell pools as an added layer of protection following a shortage of lifeguards.

16:25 16 September 2019

Bracknell Leisure Centre’s swimming pools will soon be fitted with £50,000 underwater cameras to help save lives. The move comes following a shortage of lifeguards. 

 

On Tuesday, bosses from Everyone Active, the group that runs the leisure centre pools, presented their successes and challenges to councillors. They said that one of their main challenges is the shortage of lifeguards, which sometimes forces them to close the pools to the public. To tackle the problem, the group is investing £50,000 in a pool view system that will assist lifeguards on duty. 

 

David Love, Everyone Active area manager, explained: “Underwater cameras pick up if a casualty is stationary for a certain amount of time and alarms will be set off.

 

“It’s there to support the lifeguards to react quicker than they would do without it.

 

“We will still use lifeguards, it’s just an extra layer of protection.”

 

Mark Tennant, contract manager at Everyone Active, added: “It doesn’t mean we remove lifeguards – it just means we can reduce the number of lifeguards.

 

“It supports us because it means where there are dangers of pool closures sometimes because we haven’t got enough lifeguards, or there have been instances where we’ve had to reduce the surface water of the pool by putting a lane rope in because we’ve not got enough lifeguards on duty.

 

“This investment means we won’t need to do that moving forward so it’s a real positive for everybody.”