REGULAR swimmers who bathe at the Parliament Hill Lido have warned Heath managers the City of London not to hand over control of the Grade-II listed pool to a private company after it was revealed they were commissioning a study into all sports facilities on the Heath.

The City of London today (Thursday) told the New Journal that there were no formal plans to hand over the day to day running of the 1938 built Olympic sized pool to a private firm, but admitted that it was were drawing up the report. This would include fresh plans for the management of the Lido, the Parliament Hill running track, sets of tennis courts, and the swimming ponds.

The chairman of the Lido swimmers User Group, Dr Andrew Robins, told the New Journal they were monitoring the progress of the City's report and were keen the Lido was kept under the same management as the swimming ponds.

He said: “The idea that the Lido could be cherry picked and leave the ponds behind is a big worry. Regular users are anxious that the benefits we see with the Lido being managed alongside the Hampstead Heath ponds is maintained. We find it hard to believe any commercial organisation would be a rush to take on swimming as a whole on the Heath due to the costs. Life guard cover, for example, is a hot topic at the moment.

“We are waiting for more information to come from the City before we start talking about what the future holds.”

He said there had been discussions of groups such as Better taking on the pool. Better were formerly known as Greenwich Leisure, a not-for-profit group that already runs many sports facilities in Camden, such as the Prince of Wales Road Baths in Kentish Town.

They also claim a firm called Fusion, who manage pools in Haringey, could be in the frame to take over the pool.

Dr Robins said swimmers feared opening times, especially in the winter months, could be cut if a private firm stepped in. He added: “We understand the City may be looking at their options but most people say they are the best placed people to manage the pool.”

Hampstead Heath Superintendent Bob Warnock denied any talks with any private firms had taken place. He said: “We haven’t met Fusion and we are not in talks about outsourcing, but we are in the process of commissioning consultants to undertake an options appraisal, in relation to how we deliver sporting and physical activities across the City of London’s Open Spaces. Our staff are actively visiting, and speaking to, other providers so that we can benchmark our own services and as part of this, I visited the Kings Cross Pond Club on Friday last week to look at their innovative swimming facility.

“Nothing has been concluded and it would be unwise to over-interpret this current work. My colleagues and I are well aware that the Lido is very popular – it, and Hampstead Heath, are two of the jewels in the City of London Corporation’s crown – and members of the Swimming Forum, some of whom raised concerns about outsourcing, acknowledged that the City’s staff provide a high quality service.”