THERE is a very real danger that Settle Pool could close say the trustees who run it.

Sky high energy costs has left the pool with bills it simply cannot pay - its monthly gas bill has soared from just more than £1,000 per month to £7,000.

It had hoped to be thrown a life line by the Government's £60m Swimming Pool fund, but missed out, in fact no pools in North Yorkshire received any support.

Whether it was because the pool is not local authority run, or for some other reason, is not clear. Although the trustees have asked Sport England for an explanation.

The trustees have said they are heartened by a positive response by the public towards its financial crisis and have come up with new ways to make, or save money, to keep the pool open.

And, so it has always been with the pool which was built in the first place because of the driving force of the community.

For many years, it received an annual grant from Craven District Council, and when that went as part of council savings, the team rallied and found new ways to keep it running. When the pool began to get tired, the team rallied again and got the £840,000 to pay for a major refurbishment. And, then, Storm Arwen put the reopening back for several weeks - and a Crowdfunding campaign secured the money to install solar panels on the roof.

Now, the team is faced with perhaps it's biggest challenge. The pool is not just a wonderful facility, it is essential for the North Craven community. If it closes, the chances are it will never reopen. That must not be allowed to happen.