Ten Kent swimming pools are to receive a share of a £60m handout from the government and Sport England to make them more energy efficient.

Money from the Swimming Pool Fund will assist centres in Swanley, Whitstable, Cranbrook, Tenterden, Maidstone, Larkfield, Hoo, Faversham, Folkestone and Gravesend.

The grants are aimed at keeping running costs down.

It comes as a number of Kent’s pool bosses last year said they were at risk of closure over spiralling energy bills.

The White Oak Leisure Centre in Swanley is to receive £612,950 towards the installation of solar voltaic panels.

The Whitstable pool will get £85,392 to help install additional metering and monitoring software.

The Weald Sports Centre in Cranbrook will receive £90,000 for new pool covers and new LED lighting.

Tenterden pool gets £22,100 to triple glaze its pool windows.

Maidstone Leisure Centre gets £516,000 to assist with heat recovery and replace old boilers on its 50-year-old building, described as the most polluting building in the borough. The council has long-term plans to replace it with a new £60m complex.

Larkfield Leisure Centre gets £405,039 for new photo voltaic panels and LED lighting.

Hoo Sports Centre, near Rochester, will receive £744,379 for solar panels and new gas boilers.

Faversham pool gets £227,500 to put in heat recovery units and variable speed fans.

Folkestone Sports Centre will get £106,380 for variable speed pumps and fans.

And finally, the Cygnet Leisure Centre in Gravesend will get £173,250 towards pool covers and heat recovery units.

They are among 325 centres nationwide who are sharing a pot of £60.5m.

A spokesman for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, said: “Swimming is a great way for people of all ages to stay active, with positive impacts on physical and mental health.

“This investment in the financial sustainability of hundreds of swimming pools will help ensure that the more than 58 million visits to these facilities each year are protected, helping improve the health of the nation.”

The Sports Minister, Stuart Andrew, said: “We are sticking to our plan to get millions more people active by 2030, because we know that active people are fitter, happier and healthier.”

The government recently published its new sports strategy to get 2.5 million more adults and one million more young people meeting the Chief Medical Officer’s guidance of 150 minutes of exercise per week for adults, and 60 minutes per day for young people by 2030.