A DIVING club has come to the rescue to solve a sticky situation at the new swimming pool in Stanley.

The £5.7m facility, at the Louisa Centre, Front Street, is due to open on Monday.

During tests, the main pool's water filter was turned off and dirt gathered at the bottom. While most of it was removed when the filter was switched back on, a layer remained stuck to the tiles.

Pool bosses called in a local sub-aqua club with specialist cleaning equipment to ensure the venue was spotless before the first swimmers arrived.

Five members of the Reefseekers Diving Club answered the call and used an underwater vacuum cleaner and scrubbing brushes to solve the problem. One of the team, Caroline Kilburn, said: "It was pretty clean when we got in, there were just a few bits that the filter couldn't pick up and we finished it off. It was something a bit different for us and we really enjoyed it."

The pool opens on Monday at noon. The first 100 children paying to use the pool will receive a free goodie bag that includes healthy snacks and drinks, swimming vouchers and a voucher for the Play Zone area.

For further details, contact the Louisa Centre on (01207) 218877.

The Reefseekers club meets at the Belle Vue Leisure Centre, Consett, every Wednesday, 8pm to 10pm. For further details, contact (01207) 590157.