LEISURE staff who struck gold in a national awards scheme shared their reward to help the lonely and depressed over Christmas and into the new millennium.

Pool staff at Pendle Leisure Centre, Colne, received £1,000 as part of the BT Gold Pool Award scheme to mark high standards in safety and staff training.

A cheque for half the amount was presented to a representative from the local branch of the Samaritans during a ceremony at the leisure centre. The other £500 will be used to buy extra pool safety equipment and fund staff training.

The award was given to only 100 swimming pools across the country. The pools must have been involved in the annual BT Swimathon fund-raising appeal.

Lleisure centre assistant manager Anne Meachem said: "We have always taken our commitment to safety and staff training seriously and this award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of pool staff."

The centre recently teamed up with Nelson and Colne College, the Samaritans and Outline Print of Colne to give 1,600 full-time college students a free swimming pass for over Christmas and New Year with details of the Samaritans telephone hot-line number on it in case any of them needed to talk to someone over the festive period.

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