S.O.S. Aviemore
Home Page
Welcome to the Save Our Swimming (SOS) Aviemore Website
Aviemore village lies at the heart of the Cairngorms National Park, part of the wider community of Badenoch and Strathspey. The Park is renowned worldwide not only for its stunning natural beauty but also for the wide range of outdoor and leisure activities available locally. Swimming is one such activity that is enjoyed by all members of our community regardless of age, gender or ability. Learning to swim gives kids and adults many advantages. As well as being great fun and good exercise it is the only sport that could ultimately save a life.
For the last six years, local residents have been able to access the excellent swimming facilities offered by the Aviemore Highland Resort (AHR) at affordable rates through cooperation with the High Life Highland scheme. AHR is part of the Macdonald chain of hotels founded by Donald Macdonald. Unfortunately, the current contract expires on the 31st March 2012. In September 2010, AHR informed the Council that they did not wish to renew the agreement after this date. This potentially leaves Aviemore and the wider local community without suitable swimming facilities at a price that the majority of the local population can afford.
Our local children and those with disabilities will potentially lose the most here - the former need access to good quality facilities in which to learn to swim and the latter need easy and affordable access to a leisure complex with appropriate facilities. Whilst there are other pools within 5 miles of AHR (at Dalfaber Golf and Country Club and the Hilton Coylumbridge Hotel) both have much smaller pools, significantly poorer disabled access and are more difficult to get to for many people . No other pool offers the large shallow safe area for kids or the fun of the flume slide and wave pool. All these benefits will be lost and not replaced easily if this decision goes ahead and local families can no longer afford to pay for access to the AHR pool.
The local community, supported by our community councils, have begun a campaign to hopefully
make AHR management and their parent company as well as Highland Council and High Life Highland aware of the massive impact this decision will have on the local community with whom they live and operate. Macdonald Resorts' own website for example states "People are at the very centre of our hotel and hospitality business. It's in our interest to take our responsibility to them, their communities and environment very seriously."We have been urging AHR to reconsider their stance and to re-engage with Highland Council and High Life Highland to ensure the continuity of the current arrangements.
If this campaign fails, then quite bluntly many local children may not be able to learn to swim, those with disabilities may be denied easy access to an activity that they love and all of us will have lost a vital physical activity which helps keep us happy and healthy.
Please help us in our campaign - follow the links at the top of the page for more background information and what you can do to help. Time is running out, so please get involved before it's too late.
Website last updated, Friday 11/5/12
Website last updated, Friday 11/5/12
