SHOVELLING up debris, painting and cleaning is among hours of back-breaking work taking place to spruce up a disused lido.

SHOVELLING up debris, painting and cleaning is among hours of back-breaking work taking place to spruce up a disused lido.

Groups of offenders are carrying out the work around Broomhill Pool in Ipswich as part of their community service punishments.

The joint project between The Broomhill Pool Trust and Suffolk Probation is likely to continue for much of the summer with a team working every Sunday to make the old open-air pool less of an eyesore and put it in tip-top condition.

At the weekend, the 16-strong team were retrieving junk dumped in the water, clearing up leaves and weeds, and old masonry, removing graffiti, with plenty to keep them occupied - the first work carried out there for seven years.

Probation service supervisor Allan Ellis said: “This is the third week they have been working here and there is still quite a lot to do - we will be here for several weeks yet.

“There was a bit of a downpour earlier so we did some work inside the old changing rooms.

“The aim is to give the building a little love and attention and to make sure it doesn't deteriorate any further.”

The team was enjoying the work - some of them had used the pool when it was open.

The trust and Ipswich Borough Council are currently exploring possibilities for refurbishing the grade two listed lido, including reopening the pool or building holiday homes on the site.

There is due to be a temporary cover put over the pool soon to protect it and the diving boards will be taken down and preserved.

A Heritage Lottery bid was rejected last year and since then work has been taking place on the submission of another bid.

Do you believe Broomhill Pool is worth saving? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN, or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk