Fears that Crewe Flyers SC will be forced to close within 12 months are growing after a hike in pool hire prices threatened to put them out of business.

The club, who have served the town since 1939, are drowning under the weight of financial pressure initially sparked by COVID-19.

They have lost close to £20,000 over the past two years trying to keep going despite losing 33% of their membership, and are now haemorrhaging cash at a rate of about £1,000 every month.

Now Flyers say that Everybody Sport & Recreation, who run the Crewe Lifestyle Centre, are putting prices up by 20% in a move which could spell the end.

Spokesman Dave Mears said the Flyers will not give up without a fight – but made a plea for assistance from local people and the authorities.

He said: "We were going strong with about 135 members, but when Covid struck we were suddenly left without a pool to practice in and no competitions to take part in.

"We used up a good proportion of cash reserves to get up and running again once restrictions were lifted, but we have seen a 33% drop in swimmers which means a similar drop in revenue.

"Over the past 12 months we have retained the same amount of pool time and paid our coaches with the hope of getting numbers back to pre-Covid levels.

"But on top of that we are facing a 20% increase in pool hire costs from April and, sadly, we have to increase our membership prices at the same time – but we will not ask for more than 5% extra.

"So we have to make some serious decisions in the next few months. Do we cut back on pool time? Let coaching staff members go? We don't want to do that but what choice do we have?

"If we don't get more funding there is a real danger the club could fold within 12 months as it will run out of money to cover costs. That would be a crying shame but we won't give up without a fight, we're determined to keep the club running."

The Flyers, who have developed many swimmers at county, regional and national level over the years, currently have 14 members qualified for the Cheshire Championships this year. Their newest batch of recruits are hoping to get their first taste of competitive action over the coming months.

Dave, who joined the Flyers committee in 2006 when his children started swimming, has applied for grant funding which was intended to pay for new equipment and training but it will now have to be used to cover basic costs.

He added: "We are desperate to get new swimmers into the club to increase revenue and reduce losses. It's a fantastic club which caters for all standards of swimmer and provides a great way for children to keep active and healthy and meet new friends.

"If any parents in Crewe area want their kids to learn to swim please get in touch by finding us on Facebook, or via our website creweflyers.co.uk.

"We'd also love to hear from local businesses who might be willing to help support us, and would be extremely grateful for donations or sponsorship to help us stay afloat."

Dave stressed: "It's not just Crewe Flyers that are under threat, there are seven or eight clubs in Cheshire East who are going to be affected by this."

Everybody Sport and Recreation responded: "Since we launched our Club Use Agreements six years ago, we advised all clubs there would be an annual hire fee increase.

"We have not increased any hire costs to our clubs since these agreements have been in place to allow all clubs to stabilise their membership base, especially after a very uncertain period during Covid-19.

"We also supported clubs such as Crewe Flyers during the pandemic as much as possible to continue operating with flexible payment options.

"In line with increases in our operational costs and to ensure the full recovery of our charity, from April 2022 we will be increasing hire fee charges to all clubs as per the club use agreement.

"Our aquatics team have been in contact with representatives from all our clubs and are supporting where possible these changes to fees."

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