BLACKPOOL hotels have been accused of being apathetic about the safety of their swimming pools.

A "Managing Health and Safety in Swimming Pools" document issued by the Environment Agency warns hotels to improve poolside supervision, cut pool depths or close their pools down.

In recent weeks the Agency has been monitoring hotels closely and as a result pools have been closed down because of a lack of adequate supervision.

And only one Blackpool hotel has decided to train staff in basic lifeguarding skills with the Swimming Teachers' Association.

STA development coordinator Tony Mountford said that he wrote to a group of Blackpool hotels with pools to tell them about the course and to invite them to a meeting to discuss it.

"Not a single person turned up to the meeting and only one hotel bothered to reply.

"This came as a big shock to us. If somebody were to drown in a Blackpool hotel the repercussions for the town and for tourism would be massive. Hotels have a duty to provide a safe swimming environment."

For smaller family-run hotels, hiring more full-time staff is an extra expense that many can't afford so one option is to train existing hotel staff in first aid and rescue skills.

This idea has already been employed by the Maxime Hotel on the North Promenade who have trained five members of staff, including the chef and receptionist, in basic lifeguarding skills.

Tony Adams, managing director of the hotel, said that the training was hard but necessary.

"It is getting to the stage where the small family-run operation is becoming over-run with legislation and paperwork. However, in this instance safety is paramount and we took the decision to train some key members of our team."

Over a two-day period, staff from the family-run 35-bedroom hotel, put in around 12 to 14 hours of time each in between shifts. The team will now undertake monthly training updates and need to be reassessed in two years' time.

Barbara Ashurst who runs the New Osterley Hotel, Adelaide Street, said her pool was already covered by a surveillance camera and children under 12 years old must be supervised. She felt that her safety measures were up to scratch and that the hotel would be able to cope in an emergency.