A councillor has accused Fife Sports and Leisure Trust of giving working adults in West Fife a “second‑class service” at Carnegie Leisure Centre – but the trust insists evening swimmers are getting a fair deal.
Councillor Andrew Verrecchia, who represents Rosyth and the surrounding villages, contacted The Press to raise what he calls the “shabby provision” of evening swimming at the flagship Dunfermline pool.
He claims the main pool is “effectively closed to meaningful public or lane swimming” on most weeknights between 5pm and 8pm, with only “token” access on others – and says local people are being short‑changed compared to swimmers in Kirkcaldy.
The Scottish Labour councillor argues that, where there used to be a clear, colour‑coded timetable, the current plain‑text listings make it difficult for the public to see when the main pool is actually available.
“Where members and taxpayers once relied on a clear colour‑coded chart for quick appraisal, the opaque presentation now makes it difficult to spot gaps, overlaps and the reduction of evening access,” he said. “Working adults, the very people most likely to be at work until after 5pm, are being offered a second‑class service.”
He also believes hours in the shallow children’s pool are being presented as if they were equivalent to general public or lane swimming.
“That shallow pool is intended for young children and families and should not be counted as general public or lane‑swimming capacity,” he said. “Counting it as such is inaccurate for adult swimmers.”
He has called on the trust to stop what he describes as “obfuscation”, restore transparent timetables and rethink the evening programme so that people who work during the day “can actually get a swim”.
In a detailed response, Fife Sports and Leisure Trust rejected the suggestion that there is little or no meaningful access for adult and lane swimmers in the evenings.
The trust said there is public access in the main pool every weekday night, but that the number of lanes varies to accommodate its Learn to Swim lessons and local club training.
It set out a breakdown showing lanes available between 5pm and 8pm from Monday to Friday, and said demand for water space at Carnegie was high, particularly during early evening peak times.
The trust also firmly denied that it was padding out its main‑pool timetable with children’s‑pool sessions.
A spokesperson said that when “public swimming” is listed on the main pool timetable, that refers specifically to the main pool, and that the children’s pool has its own separate programme published online.
“We do not regard children’s pool sessions as equivalent provision for adult lane swimmers, and they are not presented as such,” they added.
On comparisons with Kirkcaldy Leisure Centre – where Cllr Verrecchia says two lanes are reserved for public swimmers on five weeknights – the trust pointed to long‑standing differences between the two sites.
Carnegie, it said, has never operated a model where two lanes are permanently set aside for public use every evening. Instead, lane allocations are adjusted over the week to balance community swimming, swimming lessons and club training, reflecting local participation patterns and historic agreements with user groups.
The trust added that Carnegie’s public swimming timetable has remained unchanged since the centre returned to full operation after Covid restrictions.
The current programme, it argues, represents a “long‑established balance” between open public swimming, its Learn to Swim scheme – described as the largest in Fife – and organised club use, and is designed to provide broad community access while keeping the popular venue sustainable.
Cllr Verrecchia, however, insists local people “pay for these facilities and deserve equitable, honest access - not obfuscation or token provision”.
