THE wait could soon be over for hundreds of Locks Heath residents wanting to dive into a new public swimming pool.

Fareham Council is to release a plot of land at the Locks Heath Centre in the hope that a developer will snap it up for a swimming pool and leisure facility.

When completed the public pool will be 25 metres long and offer four lanes while the adjoining gym will be a private facility.

Sean Woodward, leader of Fareham Council, said residents had waited long enough and it was time to turn plans to action.

"We originally proposed the swimming pool about five years ago. It will now go out to

tender to the three different companies that have expressed an interest in running it," he said.

"When we suggested it, we carried out a

survey of every fourth house in the area and the response was 80 per cent in favour."

The four-lane pool will operate on a pay-to-swim basis while the gym will be run privately with members having access to the pool.

Cllr Woodward added: "This type of public/private facility is something that has never been done in this area before."

A number of sites were considered during the planning stage, including Bridge Road in Swanwick, Addison Road in Sarisbury and the old Coldeast Hospital.

But council bosses agreed it should be built on a vacant plot next to the shopping centre.

Councillor Connie Hockley, executive member for leisure, said: "A swimming pool is something we feel is desperately needed in the western wards of the borough, especially after all the growth that has taken place there in recent years.

"We need to do all we can to provide leisure facilities where there is a need for them. Unfortunately we, as a council, do not have the capital to build the pool and so we are going down this route."