EMERGENCY repairs to the diving pool at Poole’s Dolphin leisure centre are set to be carried out at a cost of £150,000.

Portfolio holder for Economy, Culture and Learning, Cllr Mohan Iyengar, was due last night to approve the allocation of the money from reserves.

In a report prepared for Cllr Iyengar, Head of Culture and Community Kevin McErlane said the work was not budgeted for and warned that further money is likely to be needed to keep the centre open for the next five years.

A replacement leisure centre forms part of the proposed multi-million pounds regeneration project of Town Centre North.

Mr McErlane suggested Cllr Iyengar ask for the provision of the new leisure centre to be as early as possible in the regeneration programme to avoid future works at the current centre.

His report reveals that the diving pool is currently closed because the concrete pool wall and dive tower need to be repaired. The work will take around six to eight weeks.

The report warns that if the dive pool were to remain closed for five years the centre could lose up to £300,000.

The council also has a management contract with SLM Ltd and failing to undertake the maintenance of the diving pool would constitute a breach of contract.

The report says: “Borough of Poole is seeking to replace Dolphin as part of the medium-long term regeneration as this is likely to be more cost effective than trying to rectify defects or refurbishment.

“In the meantime it intends to try to keep it operational, which is likely to require additional capital funding.”

The centre was built in the early 1970s and offers a gym, group exercise studio, three swimming pools and a diving pool.

It attracts nearly 340,000 visitors each year, 150,000 of which are for water-based activities.

The report notes that the interior decor of the centre is good but that since 2011 the building structure and plant “have been showing increasingly visible signs of deterioration.” Surveys reveal that some of the centre’s steel reinforcement needs to be replaced.

The dive pool is used by around 450 people each week for formal and casual diving, swimming and scuba lessons.