The free entry had an extraordinary impact on increased usage of the pools, compared to the 2021-22 swim season, but it is not among the questions posed by market research organisation — newfocus — in the five-minute survey.
Since the last weekend in November until Monday (March 13) the pools were used by — based on figures supplied by the shire for November and December — at least three times the amount of people from the previous season.
The 2022-23 swim season not only offered free entry to the outdoor pools, but also had extended hours that saw the pools open until 8pm.
With the outdoor pools now all closed for the season, the online survey is being staged to garner information about opinions on the pools from 13 to 24-year-old users.
Among the questions is a probe on the opinion of survey participants on whether or not the pools are financially sustainable long-term and whether they are good for community health/wellbeing.
The survey is also seeking an opinion on whether the pools provide social connections and inclusions for the community
People completing the survey are offered the opportunity to strongly disagree, strongly agree and even offer a don’t know response.
They are also asked how strongly they agree that Campaspe Shire Council should be spending ratepayer funds on outdoor pools for the community?
Among the other questions are: Have you used any outdoor pool since reopening in November 2022?; and, Did you use any outdoor pool when they were last open for use between November 2021 and March 2022?
Frequency of use is another of the subjects included in the survey, which offers a $500 eGift card as a prize for one lucky participant for providing their information.
The five-minute survey will be one of many considerations of council as they move forward with the 2023-24 swim season and decide on the format of how the outdoor pools service is delivered later this year.
For those who don’t remember it was a January 2022 rally to Save The Outdoor Pools (STOP) that led to the interim future of the pools being guaranteed by council.
Then, in a shock decision last September, council announced the pools would be fee-free for swimmers in 2022-23.
That came after the council decided in late January that a recommendation to close the pools (Tongala, Kyabram, Rochester, Lockington, Stanhope, Rushworth and Colbinabbin) over the course of the next two seasons should be delayed until more information was gathered from the communities affected by the decision.
18°C