OCL lifeguards on Olympic trail

Photo: VINCENT BROWN

CAPITAL calls . . . Oldham life guards Simon Murphy, left, and Sam Curry are heading to London to fill a staff shortage

TWO Oldham lifeguards are off to the big smoke to help swimming pools struggling to recruit staff — and they could pave the way for Oldhamers to help during the Olympics.

In a pilot scheme, Oldham Community Leisure (OCL) has struck a deal with Greenwich Leisure Limited to allow Oldham employees to work at the Waterfront Centre in London.

Sam Curry and Simon Murphy headed off on Saturday to work there for eight weeks.

In parts of the South, some leisure facilities are experiencing difficulties in recruiting staff to cover the busy summer period.

OCL says the scheme is a social enterprise agreement between two leisure providers who use the same ethos and conservative principles.

And it could help with the massive amount of staff needed in the run up to the 2012 Olympic Games as, if deemed successful, it could mean many more staff from Oldham being deployed on a temporary basis to help with the shortages in recruiting local staff.

Sam and Simon are both looking forward to taking part in the experiment and finding out about other leisure providers.

And it will create employment for Oldham’s casual staff as they will cover the posts while the pair are away.

Councillor John McCann, Oldham Council Cabinet member for community services and housing, said: “Oldham Council fully supports this far-sighted initiative of OCL, which will provide career development for staff and also involve the borough in the potential benefits of the Olympics in its widest sense.”