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Council idiots trying to justify their jobs. The cost of this decision will be paid for in council tax by local residents, but it achieves nothing. In fact it removes the whole point of having a 33m pool.There's a 400m running track nearby, let's ban circuits and make runners do 500.shuttle runs across the eight lanes. Typica useless council.

- Martin, dagenham

The pool should include everyone. The resolution should be based on those who are not even swimmers yet: if going the other direction means that more new swimmers are encouraged to come, then the experiment worked. If it doesn't make the sport less intimidating, if it doesn't enable the weak swimmer to feel greater accomplishment by reaching the end safely, the it didn't work - go back to the 33.3m distance which stronger swimmers prefer. Use this media exposure as a marketing tool to invite the new swimmer. Set up additional "first-timers" classes.

I've never seen the pool, but I take it there are some kind of pool floor lane lines in the 25m direction. If not, forget everything I just said - you just can't swim in tight lanes without a dividing line on the pool bottom!

- Tom Walker, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Just who are these idiots,so full of their own importance
probably have never taken part in an egg and spoon race.thinking of themselves as seers but really not very bright at all.the end of all swimming clubs,no meaningful competition for youngsters
voters get rid of these idiots.

- D,Walsh, connahs quay, n,walesJ

What if someone jumps into the pool and gets a wedgie - will the lifeguards pull it out?

- Trunk, US

England is a "nanny" state? Try living in a "go to hell" country for a bit--you'll be flying back to nanny.

- Skip Waterhouse, la pointe, wi. USA

Still waiting for the total ban on exercise because exercise causes injuries...

- Trunk, US

No it's not better swimming! British swimmers didn't feature in the recent world swimming championships. Could the decision of this council be a contributory factor?

- Mark, Venice, Italy

And prey, just what is the relevance of Local Authorities to sensible, mature people with the abilty to think? Has the alleged recession not yet hit the beloved state sector that we all enjoy paying for? Obviously not.

- Nelly, East London

It's not H&S or the EU it's just lazy pubic sector employees. It's a service and should be run for the customer not for the convenience of the staff, simple.

- Mark, London

Will the staff at the olympics be sufficient ? or will the swimmers have to swim widths - we stand a chance of winning something then !

- Michael, Woking, UK

Good to see H & S not concerned about the water temp......................... yet!!!

- Ian - London, London

Fitness and health don't come from splashing about in the shallow end or doing bombs in deeper water. It comes from sustained physical activity. With the push off from the sides, half the width is used up before the upper body comes into play in swimming widths instead of lengths.

So no, it isn't better for swimmers.

- Rogan, Irving

My local pool is 25m and I find it quite frustrating to keep breaking my flow to turn around after such a short distance. Like a previous poster said, I do not understand how swimming widths makes it any easier for lifeguards, as surely it would mean more lanes if the pool was divided up lengthways, which would mean more observing rather than less.

Obviously another civil servant has too much time on their hands and wants to cause new issues for the taxpayer to have to appeal against.

- Smb, London, UK

so if the swimmer in the middle lane of the newly re-arranged pool gets into trouble half way through the width is he/she any easier to get to than if he had been halfway down the length of the old format? No? Oh there's a surprise!

- Andy, london

If you want to get seriously fit in the water you gotta increase the distance, hence we need more 50M pools, not the titchy paddling pools we seem to get now.
Is it any wonder nations like Aus & America woop us at swimming.
They take swimming far more serious and build proper pools.

- Russell, London

typical attitude from the borough , had the chance recently to swim 100 yd open air pool in cambridge 6 lifeguards excellent. dagenham pool has been run down over the years at one time had a nice buffet that closed . were supposed to live in a 24/7 society yet the complex is closed by 21.30 mon to fri even earlier weekends local swim clubs unable to gain extra pool time staff wont open up early for them.

- Jon, dagenham

Oh leave off, makes perfect sense.

They've just changed the direction of the lanes.

- Luke, Brixton, London

I don't think the council has carried out a proper risk assessment on this situation. If they had been more thorough they would realise that it is the water that is slowing down the lifeguards. If they drain the water out of the pool the lifeguards could more quickly ‘run’ to the assistance of anyone in difficulty.

I would expect that this may also have the added benefit of actually ‘reducing’ the number of incidents that the lifeguards would have to deal with.

I don’t think BarkingMad and DangerMan council take there responsibility seriously enough. They should raise the council tax to allow them to employ more officials to carry clipboards to engage in sensible risk reduction on behalf of the clumsy public.

- Ben, London, W1

H&S gone mad, will they shorten the pool for the Olympics now too, and while they're at it shorten the hurdles, put a baby's ball pit at the end of the long jump and make the Javelin, Discus and Shot out of rubber oooh, and a speed trap on the 100m to stop Usain Bolt getting all the glory!!!!!!!!!

- Mac Freak, London

25 years ago I did my mile ribbon in this pool...in lengths.

Swimming shorter widths does not help with endurance training. A reasonable swimmer will cover a lot of the width pushing off, so where is the benefit to be gained?

This is a council, by the way, that has just introduced 10pm bin collections in residential areas (good for the sleeping kids) and regularly bends over for the criminal minority by removing amenites enjoyed by the law abiding majority because it is easier for them (the council) to deal with.

- Escobar A-Lop-Lop, Mad as hell and not taking it anymore...

This cannot possibly be true. It's a joke, right? A place in a pool, as defined by its distance from the sides, and distance from the floor is the same whichever direction the swimming is heading in. This is GENUINELY stupid. Do the lifeguards think they have to swim a length rather than a width because that's what the swimmer did? Spanners, the lot of them. In fact, people this stupid shouldn't be life guards or in charge, in any way, of people's safety. Jobs like these require far more brain cells than demonstrated in this piece of in hosue legislations. It can't be true. Stupid people really irritate me.

- Ellie Kaye, London, UK

They already used the phrase "gone mad" in the article!

- Julia, London

What a lazy and narrow minded decision. It reflects pretty poorly on the level of lifeguards as well. England IS a nanny state and only getting worse. Can't wait for the 2012 Olympics - "Oh hello, isn't this pool a bit long? Why aren't we swimming widths?".

- John, London

The council say it is easier for the staff and it's better swimming. The audacity of the council is incredible. Why not just close the pool? Surely that would be easiest of all for staff? And to state that it is "better swimming" is arrogant as it is not better for the actual swimmers, which is, after all, what a swimming pool is for. There is a deart of pools in London and 33m is not that long. I hope that Mr. Bradford doesn't let this go and involves his MP, if necessary.

- Ross, London, UK

Seems reasonable.

- Geoff, London

3x33.3m is near enough 100m! I cannot see the East End benefiting from the Olympic legacy if this is the attitude. This confirms that you have to fail the interview and an intelligencre test to get a job with a council.

- Michael, London

First person to use the phrase "...Gone Mad" in a comment on this article wins a prize.

- Nolan, Londonist

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