Pools season starts this weekend
Published on 28 November 2022
Council is gearing up its aquatic facilities for the community to make a splash this summer, with outdoor pools in Hepburn Shire set to open on Saturday 3 December. Council will again offer free entry to Shire pools.
The pool season will be a little different this year due a sector-wide shortage of aquatics staff which will initially reduce pool operating hours.
“We would love for more people to put up their hand and apply for a job with our Aquatics Team so we can extend the hours of operation of our local pools,” said Bradley Thomas, Council’s Chief Executive Officer.
“We’re really keen to have more people join our team to give our community the best opportunity to cool off over summer.
“While lifeguards need to have certain qualifications, there are customer-facing roles such as Community Pool Assistants, where you interact and connect with patrons, without the need for pool qualifications.
“I encourage anyone who is interested in taking on one of these important roles to visit our Council website and apply now.”
Free access to Shire pools ties directly to the Council Plan, where Council aims to create a healthy, supported and empowered community. Council is investing $500,000 in the costs of swimming pools in 2022/23, including staffing, maintenance, water and operational costs, along with $578,000 in capital improvements following the adoption of the Aquatics Strategy earlier this year.
Mayor, Cr Brian Hood, said that the community told us that access to quality aquatic facilities is important to them, and Council has listened.
“We are investing over $1 million this financial year in our aquatic facilities.”
“Although limited due to staffing resources, we are aiming to make the opening hours suitable for family and recreation use and will keep on reviewing and assessing the hours throughout the pool season. We will extend these hours where we can,” he said.
Pool opening hours are:
- Weekends – 2- 6pm
- Weekdays during school term - 3-7pm
- Weekdays during school holidays - 2-6pm
Council operates a weather policy at the pools. This means Trentham and Daylesford pools open on days predicted to be 21+ degrees based on the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) predictions for Ballarat. Clunes Pool opens on days predicted to be 21+ degrees based on BOM predictions for Bendigo.
Changes to the planned hours will be advertised on Council’s Facebook page. Find out more on public pools and job opportunities at www.hepburn.vic.gov.au.