SWIMMING coaches in Bournemouth and Poole have welcomed the LeAF Academy’s ambitious plans to build Dorset’s first Olympic-sized swimming pool.

The Duck Lane-based LeAF Elite Athlete Academy has submitted plans for a 10-lane 50m indoor pool on their campus in north Bournemouth.

There are currently only eight 10-lane 50m pools in the UK, the nearest to Bournemouth being at Bristol and Plymouth, both opened last year, the London Aquatics Centre, built for the Olympic Games, and Cardiff.

In the south, there are eight-lane 50m pools at Bath University, Millfield School in Somerset, Portsmouth, Crawley, Swansea, Hillingdon and Crystal Palace and a six-lane pool at Ealing.

LeAF has promised that if the facility gets the go-ahead from Bournemouth Borough Council, the pool will be available not only to its own students and elite swimmers but also to clubs, swimming academies and the public.

Dr Annetta Minard, executive principal of LeAF (the Learning and Achievement Federation), said: “This is a wonderful opportunity to carry on the legacy of 2012 and inspire more young people to participate in swimming.

“We have some very talented swimmers joining our elite athlete programme in September and to become the best, they ideally need an Olympic-sized pool to train in.

“We have been working on this idea with local swimming clubs and academies, schools, the university and the community, and there is clearly a demand for such a facility.

“It would be fully accessible throughout the weekends and school holidays to the public and swimming academies.”

LeAF declined to disclose the project’s estimated cost but 50m pool projects invariably run into millions of pounds.

A spokesperson said: “It will be completed and funded in stages.

Some funding has been generated but more is needed.”

The school has made funding bids to various organisations, including Sport England, to develop the pool should planning permission be granted, with LeAF hoping to have the building open in two years.

“The design fits with the concept of our high performance campus – simple buildings which enable athletes to train at national and international level,” said the spokesperson.

“We are two years into our site plan and, so far, everything has been completed on time and to budget, so we do have the necessary experience to make this happen.”

Swim Bournemouth head coach Emma Richards said: “We are very excited about the plans being put forward.”

Robin Armayan, head coach of Poole Swimming Club, added: “To become the best, swimmers really need to be able to access the best facilities and train in competition-sized pools.

“This would be wonderful news for the area.”

Plans for the swimming pool follow news that the Academy has secured planning permission for a multi-million-pound sports hall big enough to host international events.

The planning application for the pool is now with Bournemouth council and a decision is expected later this year.

LeAF, which is based in Duck Lane, Bournemouth, is a federation of academies comprising the LeAF Studio, which provides specialist education for 14-19 years olds (including elite athletes), the Oak Academy for 11-19 year-olds, Elm Primary and Little Oaks Nursery.