This past year I purchased a Swimming Membership at River Park Leisure Centre. I swim approximately twice a week, and I would go more often but I have school-age children and

my swimming is limited both by my children’s school hours and the use of the pool by local schools.

This week, River Park pool is unfortunately closed and, for my convenience, I can drive instead to Eastleigh to use the brand new, shiny Places Leisure (the replacement centre for Fleming Park). Yesterday I decided to do just that, and what a pleasant surprise: an open inviting reception area, a bank of receptionists to cater to your fitness whims, a clean and tidy changing area with lockers that shut and lock, plenty of toilets that actually flush, a lack of used adhesive dressings adorning the bottom of the pool, individual cubicles to shower in with lockable doors rather than ripped curtains, multiple hairdryers! The list of benefits at Places Leisure is almost endless.

Thank you River Park for the temporary transfer of my membership, for showing me what a leisure centre can aspire to! The people of Eastleigh are surely blessed with their own Christmas miracle. Now please, Winchester City Council, crack on and build something similar in Winchester... in my lifetime!

Claire Welland

Headbourne Worthy