PLANS to cut Inverclyde’s provision of free swimming for children look set to halted.

However under new proposals, youngsters will have to show a special free swim card, to prove they are eligible for the sessions.

Under 16s have not had to pay to use Inverclyde Leisure’s pools since 2005, but the council had previously decided to slash its budget for the scheme by £100,000 to £80,000.

In January councillors heard a proposal that suggested free swimming would only be made available on Saturday and Sunday mornings, with subsidised fees at other times.

Elected members were dissatisfied with the plan and challenged council officers to bring something better back to the table.

Now it is being suggested deferring the budget saving for a year and that, for the 12 months from the start of April, Inverclyde Leisure be paid for each swim rather than a set annual sum.

A new report to go before councillors later this month says: “In order to access a subsidised swim, young people [will have to] register free of charge for an under-16 residents’ swim card.

“This card will be provided by Inverclyde Leisure and will ask for proof of address and an agreement that data can be shared with the council.”

The card would entitle users to free swimming from April 2021 until the end of March 2022.