Like Phase I, Phase II of the SPSF is a competitive fund which will be allocated in a single funding round.
Only applications meeting the eligibility criteria and presenting a case aligning with the fund’s core objectives are encouraged to apply. Due to the competitive nature of the fund not all local authorities will be successful in their application and successful local authorities may not receive funding for all the facilities they have applied for.
Who can apply?
Applications must be from a local authority that:
- is based in England,
- has at least one swimming pool that will benefit from improved energy efficiency because of this support
- have applied for funding towards eligible costs.
Local authority applicants (unitary, metropolitan district, district, city and borough councils) are asked to co-ordinate a single submission to the fund on behalf of all publicly accessible swimming pools in their area and engage with operators, independent charitable organisations and other tiers of government (e.g. parish councils) managing public pools within their area.
Any funding would need to be safeguarded with security of tenure. The length of the security required by Sport England varies according to the amount of the grant.
Applicants do not need to have applied for Phase I to be eligible to apply for Phase II.
What we’re funding
Phase II will fund eligible costs relating to capital investments that reduce swimming pool facilities’ energy consumption levels. Eligible costs include:
- Material costs
- Installation costs associated with the intervention
- Professional and technical project fees directly associated with the on-site construction/installation of the capital intervention
Reasonable enabling works to prepare the site for the capital project may be included in the applications provided they are directly linked to the core technologies being installed and these will be reviewed for value for money.
What we won’t fund
- costs of new build facilities but the funding can be used to enhance a planned refurbishment as long as the monies are additional to the current plans.
- costs or liabilities incurred prior to award of the grant funding.
- ongoing repairs or maintenance costs.
- interventions that were included in future budgeted plans and are not new capital projects.
- costs of additional surveys and options appraisals across a number of facilities or for a specific facility
Applicants are strongly encouraged to apply for capital interventions that are known to generate a reduction in energy consumption levels and wherever possible, a reduction in carbon output of swimming pool facilities.
The interventions in the table below form the 'menu of options' available in Phase II.
They're listed in a priority order, by which the facility is encouraged to have completed the higher priority items before moving to items further down, although it's appreciated that site specifics may dictate if this is feasible.
Priority group |
Intervention |
1 |
- Photo voltaic (PV) panels
- Install additional metering and monitoring software
- Variable speed filtration
- Shower flow restrictors
|
2 |
- Variable speed fans
- Main pool cover
- Learner pool cover
- Heat recovery to air handling units
|
3 |
- Replace fluorescent lighting with LED lighting
- Variable speed heating/cooling pumps
|
4 |
- Install combined heat and power boiler
- Replace gas boilers older than 20 years
- Thermostatic radiator valves
|
5 |
- Upgrade pool hall windows to triple glazing
- Plant room insulation
- Power factor correction
- Micro filtration
|
The guidance document below provides further detail about the different items on this menu, including details of the information that's required to demonstrate the capital intervention is viable.
The information required is split across the application and award stages to minimise burden and potentially wasted effort should an application be unsuccessful.
There is a further document available below which provides design guidance notes on a number of the menu options to help inform applicants around the basics of the intervention and headlines impacts.