The reopening date of a leisure centre’s swimming pool has been revealed after months of uncertainty about the venue’s future.

The facility at Tenterden Leisure Centre will welcome swimmers again tomorrow (Thursday).

It comes after it was announced the centre will be taken over by a new operator following a lengthy stand-off between its trust and Ashford Borough Council (ABC).

Freedom Leisure – which also runs the Stour Centre and Julie Rose Stadium in Ashford – will remain in charge of the not-for-profit trust for a two-year "interim" period before a long-term operator is found.

Chief operating officer Matt Wickham said: “We are delighted to be reopening the pool so soon after taking over the operation of the centre on May 1.

“It was always a firm commitment to reopen the pool as quickly as we could and thanks to my colleagues at Tenterden who have done an amazing job to get the pool ready for Thursday’s opening.

“We hope to see lots of people coming for a swim, especially as it is half-term.”

Residents and users of this popular leisure centre will be able to swim from 7.30am on Thursday with the first lane swimming session.

Later that morning will see the return of the pool water features including the wave machine, flume and children’s play area from 10am.

ABC says the reopening of the pool and the initial timetable has been possible due to a successful recruitment drive to acquire and train a team of lifeguards needed to operate the pool safely.

But in the short-term, the pool will run at a slightly reduced capacity at certain times as bosses continue to hunt for new staff.

It comes after Tenterden Leisure Trust (TLT) confirmed it would hand back control of the building earlier this year after months of clashing with ABC over the continued closure of the centre's swimming pool.

The council had previously said it was "extremely disappointed and concerned" by the situation, which kicked off just three months after a near-year-long closure finally ended.

Following what centre manager Jordan Garland described as "one of the most challenging periods in the history [of the centre]", the relaunch in September saw a completely renewed roof installed alongside a refreshed interior at a cost of almost £2 million.

But the swimming pool, which was previously operated by Serco, was forced to close once again at the beginning of December after debris fell from the roof.

And In February, ABC served notice it would be cutting funding to the trust and Serco, which served notice to cease its contract with the trust to operate the centre.

Jo Fox, ABC’s assistant director of environment, property and recreation, said: “We are pleased the swimming pool at Tenterden Leisure Centre is opening again, and want to thank customers and residents for their patience.

“We know how vital these leisure facilities are for our residents’ health and wellbeing and we look forward to seeing them being used, alongside the other recent improvements to the centre.”