The next meeting of the Haggerston Pool Campaign is Thursday 13th MAY at 5:30/6 pm at the doctors surgery (Queensbridge Practice) at 24 Holly St, E8. Everyone welcome.

The plans for city financiers UBS to open a city academy on the site of Laburnum primary school continue. The plans are due to be announced in Hackney on June 15th by schools minister Stephen Twigg.

UBS will invest £2 million and the national Department for Education & Skills up to £25 million. The intention is for the school to open in September 2006 as a mixed secondary school specialising in Maths and Music, taking in 900 11-16 year olds and 250 in the sixth form.

It is still unclear whether the new school will include Haggerston Baths.

April's Building Design magazine reports that Hackney Council are claiming £7 million back from the architect and cost consultants of Clissold Leisure Centre. The centre cost £31 million - whereas the original budget was £7.5 million - and was open for just 20 months before closing for health and safety reasons due to major faults with the building.

Building Design magazine says the extra costs were "...including a £7 million payment to contractor Gleeson for its wasted time and resources......Hackney claimed the £7 million payment....mainly related to the contractor waiting for design information". Full article at http://www.clissoldleisure.com/stories/storyReader$572 and generally more information about Clissold Leisure centre at www.clissoldleisure.com .

There is no date given for the centre re-opening.

The free children's swimming over Easter saw queues outside Hackney's pools. Funded by the GLA, the Department of Health, The Department of Education and Skills and the London 2012 Olympic bid over the Easter holidays - the scheme is due to be repeated in the summer if it is seen as an overall success.

Despite being homeless, Hackney's children's swimming club continues to hold its own at local galas. The club was at Haggerston until it closed in 2000, then at Clissold until it closed in 2003 and has now found pool time in the 20m pool at Islington's Higbury Grove School. Session times and other information on http://www.clissoldswimmingclub.org.uk or from the club coach Greg McNeill on 07789 005 652.

Users of Britannia Leisure Centre complain that despite £1.8 million being invested by Leisure Connection in Britannia and King's Hall - the building continues to leak when it rains in the cafe and the gym - where buckets are put out. They also say that the showers run cold and then scalding and the centre is sometimes closed without warning

Users of other centres run by Leisure Connection on behalf of local authorities are so dissatisfied with the service - particularly the level of cleaning that they have set up "Leisure Connections Watch" website. Apart from detailing the dissatisfaction of customers at some the centres run by Leisure Connection, the site also keeps a list of contracts lost by Leisure Connection through poor cleaning or maintenance. More information at http://www.btinternet.com/~paul.burns/index.htm

Tenants associations, Haggerston Pool Campaign, The Drawing Room - and Laburnum Pilot - the Vietnamese Centre, Laburnum Boat club and the Suleymaniye mosque are planning a festival in Laburnum Street on June 26th. Anyone who would like to help with organising/publicity/activities/performance - please get in touch.

Any one who lives or passes Laburnum Street (the small street in Haggerston next to the canal) is invited to take part in the production of the new Laburnum Pilot Magazine. Artists Amy Plant and Ella Gibbs are working from the Drawing Room gallery in Laburnum St to produce a new magazine made up of drawings. The magazine will be launched on June 26th at the Laburnum Festival (see above).

They would like anyone, of any age, with a connection with the area to contribute drawings or articles - materials will be provided at the gallery. FREE drawing classes - Saturday 15th May 2-4pm and Friday 21st May 3-5pm. FREE graphic design workshops Weds 19th May 6-9pm andTuesday 25th May 6-9pm. All at the Drawing Room 55 Laburnum Street. Contact Amy Plant: 07791 246022 or Ella Gibbs: 07947 367463 or email: laburnum_pilot@hotmail.com

London Pools Campaign has secured corporate sponsorship for the next year. The aims of the organisation are to stop pool closures and to see the setting up of a London Pools Trust associated with the GLA to take on London's pools as local authorities are struggling to manage pools across the capital.

There are now 16 pool campaigns around London involved with the London Pools Campaign. An exhibition of closed and threatened pools is being planned for the summer to tour the various pool sites. More information on http://londonpoolscampaign.ground-level.org