TWO swimming pools at Irvine’s Portal leisure centre could close for ‘more than two months’ in a bid to repair faulty drainage pipes.

The Herald can reveal that following investigative works which were carried out last week, leisure centre bosses are having to drain both pools and rip up tiles in a bid to repair and replace the drainage channel.

The Herald understands the work will be carried out by the same contractors who installed the pool originally and North Ayrshire Council still say there is no definitive timeline on how long that will take, but said they “anticipate” the work will be finished before the start of the school summer holidays on June 28.

A North Ayrshire Council spokesperson said: “We are currently working with the contractor to programme these works. These will take place after the Easter Holiday and we anticipate they will be complete prior to the summer holidays.”

However the Times understands that the closure is likely to go on for weeks – from Tuesday, April 23 when the work will commence until some time around the start of the school holidays.

Both of the centre’s problem-plagued pools closed last week to enable the investigation into the drainage issues to be carried out.

It is understood anyone paying for swimming lessons via direct debit will be reimbursed.

Leisure and council chiefs have come under fire on social media with scores of people voicing their upset at the closures.

One KA Leisure member blasted the centre’s lack of effort in rescheduling swimming lessons for children.

She said: “I am concerned about the impact on my child’s swimming progress, this is the second time this has happened and swimming is also often cancelled for galas and events.

“There is no effort made to re-schedule classes or make alternative arrangements. We chose The Portal over other local pools or private options and these consistent issues means we are currently reconsidering our choice.”

A spokesperson for KA leisure said: “Further to investigatory works carried out by North Ayrshire Council and the construction contractors last year into issues with the drainage channels around the swimming pools, there are further works scheduled to take place over the next couple of months.”