Free swimming for under 16s and people over 60 is to come to an end in the Wakefield district following the Government’s announcement that its funding for the Swim 4 Free scheme will be scrapped by July.

Yvette said:

“Many families and pensioners across our area will be hit by this thoughtless decision. We campaigned some years ago to get free swimming in place for our area because many local pensioners were struggling to afford the cost of the exercise they needed in local baths.

"And it's been a great thing for local children – especially in the school holidays. The Tories and Liberals told us they were only going to cut waste. This isn't waste; it helps people stay healthy and in the end saves money for the health service too.”


When in office, Labour made available a £140 million fund from 2009/10 to support the free swimming for over 60s scheme.

That fund was comprised of both resource funding (essentially helping to waive the cost of admission) and capital funding to help rejuvenate and maintain existing swimming pools.