CAMPAIGNERS who want to save Temple Cowley Pools in Oxford have handed a 2,600-signature petition to the city council.

Under council plans, the complex is to be sold for an estimated £1.5m to help finance a new swimming pool on Blackbird Leys.

The new pool, costing £8.5m to build with a total cost of £16.8m over 25 years, will include an eight-lane, 25-metre pool with moveable floor, sauna and new changing facilities, attached to the Pegasus Road leisure centre.

The council has said refurbishing Temple Cowley Pools instead would cost £10m, increasing to £25m when including running costs over a 25-year period.

But campaigners say the work could be done at a fraction of the price.

Handing in the petition to Lord Mayor of Oxford John Goddard, campaigner Jane Alexander said it was easier for people to get to leisure facilities if they were inside the ring road.

She said both Blackbird Leys and Temple Cowley leisure centres could be refurbished for just £3m.

She said the proposal had been included in the alternative budget to be presented by the Green Party next week, which had been checked by the council’s finance department to ensure the sums added up.

She said: “It is much better to stay with what we already have, and use the money saved on something people in Blackbird Leys want, like a youth centre or more things that younger kids can go to.”

Fellow campaigner Nigel Gibson added: “It is important to keep the opinion of the public squarely in front of the Labour administration, as they simply dismiss petitions as worthless and only ever speak to the people when they need their votes at election time.

“This campaign will continue to run. We have addressed every concern raised by council officers, and keeping Temple Cowley Pools open in the most densely populated part of city makes complete sense financially and environmentally, and, most important of all, it is what the people of Oxford want.”

The council said a £3m refurbishment would only enable a backlog of maintenance and repair work, with some minor improvements, to take place and would not cover future repairs or refurbish the pools to the latest industry and regulatory standards.

Spokesman Louisa Dean said: “This option is also full of risk as more serious issues could be found within the building. We estimate that the life of the pool would be at the most seven years with this option.”

She added: “The council has diligently demonstrated that the best option is a new pool adjoining the existing leisure centre at Blackbird Leys Pool."