THE Marina Centre swimming pool is to reopen on Monday, a week ahead of schedule after a concerted effort by contractors to complete repairs.Centre manager Wayne Nixon said he was warming up the pool for a tide of early morning swimmers expected on the doorstep at 6.

THE Marina Centre swimming pool is to reopen on Monday, a week ahead of schedule after a concerted effort by contractors to complete repairs.

Centre manager Wayne Nixon said he was warming up the pool for a tide of early morning swimmers expected on the doorstep at 6.30am and that contractors would be off-site by the weekend.

The timing of the closure caused by heavy winds could not have been worse for the centre ahead of the busy Easter holidays when unseasonal snow benefited indoor attractions.

Mr Nixon said members were being told by letter that the tropical leisure pool - a haven for clubs, learner swimmers and visitors -was open again after more than a month.

Simon Mutten, environ-mental strategy manager at the borough council said: “Everyone has worked extremely hard to get the Marina back into business. The council would like to thank employees at GYB Services and T V Palmer Ltd, who with staff at the council and the Great Yarmouth Sport and Leisure Trust have worked together to minimise the disruption to users of the centre and allow the pool to reopen as quickly as it has.

“Great Yarmouth Sport and Leisure Trust, who manage the centre, are already contacting the clubs and organisations which use the pool to let them know, and the message to the general public is that as from 6.30am on Monday the swimming pool will again be open for business.”

Mr Nixon said the insurance claim was still ongoing, adding: “We are now going to be speaking to the insurance company in relation to the loss of income and about the staff wages. We will endeavour to speak to them and get a result. As yet we are still in the same boat.”

Other activities at the centre were unaffected by the closure, but staff who could not work because of it saw their hours reduced or cut altogether.

The scaffolding is likely to come down by next weekend.