Pool filled to stop skateboard menace

Wolverhampton's popular outdoor pool has again been partially filled with water after skateboarders ran amok on the surface during this week's warm weather.

Tettenhall Pool reopened in May last year after a £150,000 refurbishment.

The work included replacing concrete slabs with a new non-slip rubber surface and installing new pipework.

It closes to visitors over the winter and is drained ready to be refilled in the spring.

Today it emerged skateboarders had been congregating and jumping off the side of the pool.

Their actions sparked fears that the new surface could be ruined.

Tettenhall Regis councillor Jonathan Yardley said today: "We need to put in just a small amount of water as that stops them using it.

"It is something we first did last year but then we had to drain the water as it was full of leaves. This meant the pool was empty again and the warmer temperatures over the weekend encouraged skateboarders who were jumping off it, which could damage the lining."

The large public paddling pool is the centrepiece of Upper Green in Tettenhall and attracts hundreds of visitors on sunny days.

Last year the beauty spot, an attraction since the 1930s, became a popular haunt for skateboarders at evenings and weekends, who damaged the surface with their wheels.

Drinkers have also left cans and bottles around the site, where an alcohol ban is in operation, prompting police to step up patrols.

The pool is open to the public between May and September.

Wolverhampton City Council spokesman Tim Clark said today: "The tap was switched on at the pool on Tuesday following a complaint by a councillor.

"A small amount of water has been let into the pool to crack down on potential anti-social behaviour."