Council urged to outline plans for leisure centre and Rock Pool

Council urged to outline plans for leisure centre and Rock Pool

10 September 2025

NEWRY, Mourne and Down Council has again been asked to spell out a detailed plan for the delivery of a modern new leisure centre in Newcastle and the redevelopment of the resort’s outdoor Rock Pool.

Both proposals are projected to cost in excess of £20m.

After another summer with the gates at the iconic outdoor seawater pool at South Promenade closed, a local politician is urging the local authority to detail a pathway towards its reopening and the delivery of a much-needed new leisure centre.

The appeal by Mournes councillor Laura Devlin comes after a senior council gave an assurance that the procurement process for the new leisure centre was “live and ongoing” and aimed to provide an update within the next few weeks.

Councillors were also told recently that there will be full public consultation with regards to the design of the town centre scheme and that the redevelopment of the Rock Pool will require grant support.

Cllr Devlin described the passing of another summer with the outdoor pool closed to the public as a “huge disappointment” for local families and visitors and said it’s vital council officials provide updates on its plans for both the Rock Pool and the planned new Leisure Centre

She said the arrival of September marked the end of another summer “without our much-loved Rock Pool.”

Cllr Devlin continued: “This iconic facility is part of the very fabric of our town. Generations have learned to swim there and countless visitors have enjoyed it over the years. To see it lying closed summer after summer is a real blow to our community and tourism offering and what people need now is clarity.”

Cllr Devlin said the council must provide a “clear plan for the safe and sustainable reopening” of the Rock Pool and update residents on the progress of the new leisure centre.

“These facilities are vital not just for recreation, but for health, wellbeing and our local economy,” she continued.

“The SDLP will continue to demand Newcastle gets the facilities it deserves and I will be pressing council officials at every opportunity to ensure that its needs are heard loud and clear and our community finally gets the answers and investment it has been waiting for.”

Expert engineers have examined the seawater pool in granular detail, combing every inch of the iconic facility which has been closed for over four years.

The local authority said the surveys have helped paint a picture of the next stage of the work required at the pool where a multi-million pound investment is required to bring it back into use and comply with disabled access legislation in particular.

It was reported two years ago that a painstaking examination of the outdoor pool — which opened in the early 1930s and enjoys protected status — was undertaken to determine the exact cost of bringing it back into public use.

Preliminary investigation work at the outdoor facility revealed there were a number of issues which require urgent attention and that considerable costs are involved, potentially as high as £5m.

The pool’s structural integrity was put under the spotlight and it was reported that the concrete structure had extensively degraded, while the filtration system to filter sea water was almost unusable, with seawater pipes so corroded that rust is coming off them and contaminating the water being filtered. 

In addition, the pool is unable to retain water as a result of cracks in the concrete and has been described as no longer fit-for-purpose, with one of the most significant concerns for council officials that the pool does not comply with current health and safety standards, with suggestions that a complete rebuild may required.

Last month it was suggested that plans for thew new £12m leisure centre in the heart of the resort could be aborted in favour of an out-of-town site.

A bid to switch the location of the new complex featuring an indoor leisure pool, three 30 metre swimming lanes, dedicated heated play pool for children and an ultra-modern gymnasium, was suggested at a council committee meeting.

The current plan is to construct the multi-million pound facility at the rear and to the side of the existing Newcastle Centre at Central Promenade.