TODAY it is filthy and derelict, but an outdoor swimming- pool in Abergavenny holds happy memories for one local councillor.

As we reported yesterday, Bailey Park pool is set to be demolished this year after being derelict for more than a decade.

Abergavenny councillor Jane Foulser's father was the first superintendent at the pool in Bailey Park.

Before the Second World War Bill Edwards, who died, aged 61, in 1960, was employed by Monmouthshire council as its first swimming instructor. He taught generations of children to swim in the River Usk, and on leaving the army in 1939 took up the post at the newly built Bailey Park.

Councillor Foulser, a keen swimmer herself, said: "It was a really social place. People would sunbathe on the steps and on hot days the queue went right down the park and out the gate.

"People still come up and say he taught them to swim," said Mrs Foulser, who with husband Bill Foulser, 74, has taught disability swimming classes at Abergavenny leisure centre for 30 years.

As a child she swam in the pool. "We went there with our schools - whatever the weather, even in pouring rain, in the cold and early in the morning."

The pool, and nearby greenhouses, were closed in the 1990s and Monmouthshire council describes them as "a health and safety hazard, as well as an eyesore".

Councillor Foulser says: "I am very, very sad because it did so much for so many people. There was nothing else but the pool, and it made people very healthy swimming there.

"It was a wonderful place and I had many arguments at the town council when it was closed down without a thought."

But she says she thinks demolishing the pool will be a step forward for the park.

"It has been neglected for so long now. The pool is in a dreadful state. It is terribly filthy and the engine-room would be impossible to repair."

And she says she hopes the work takes place as soon as possible. "My biggest worry is a child could get in and drown. It is eight feet deep and does have water in when it has been raining. There is nowhere for the water to drain off."

The council is seeking lottery funding to improve the park's infrastructure and facilities, including the old swimming-pool site.