Great turnout at Community Open Day at new pool in Offaly

THERE was a great turnout at the Community Open Day at new outdoor swimming pool in Banagher on Saturday last.

The purpose of the day was to celebrate the completion of the new outdoor swimming pool and there were a number of events organised during the day to mark the occcasion. As well as a big crowd of locals, who were enjoying the facilities, the event was also attended by local public representatives and other guests.

Among the events were wellness classes, a 3km community run, kayaking and paddleboarding activities, the Shannon Poc Fada and a family friendly picnic in the park.

Another event was a 3.5k swim from Shannon Harbour to Banagher and impressively over 60 swimmers completed that swim and were presented with medals afterwards.

The organisers also took the opportunity to recognise two young local golfers who have enjoyed success on the fairways in recent times. Jack Flannery and Darragh Horan both competed in the Junior World Championships in Northern Ireland recently, with Jack finishing an impressive second and Darragh 21st in his category, and both have also done well at other underage events, and the organisers made presentations to both of them to honour those achievements.

One of the main events of the day was the unveiling of sponsored nameplates, which was one of the main fundraising events for the project. The unveiling was jointly performed by Jim Madden, George Smith and Pat Moylan.

There was also a ribbon cutting ceremony at the new pool performed by Sheila Keenaghan. The scissors to cut the ribbon arrived in dramatic fashion. A plane circled overhead and dropped a ball with the scissors taped to it into the Shannon, where it was collected by a kayaker and brought ashore for the ribbon to be cut!

The Community Open Day marked the culmination of an ambitious fundraising campaign led by the Shannon Bank Park Development Group. Since the campaign was launched in February 2025, the community has raised more than €195,000 towards the wider €850,000 development. The project also received €616,000 through the Fáilte Ireland EU Just Transition Fund.

The new facility provides an improved outdoor swimming experience at Shannon Bank Park, including wheelchair access, additional seating, wider pontoons and a dedicated launch area for kayaks and paddleboards.

Johnny Butler from the Shannon Bank Park Development Group said, “This project has been made possible by an extraordinary community effort. People from Banagher and the surrounding areas of West Offaly, East Galway and North Tipperary and the wider midlands region supported the campaign through fundraising events, sponsored nameplates and individual contributions. The new pool is a free, accessible amenity for local people and visitors to swim, exercise and enjoy the River Shannon.”

Fundraising activities included swimming, cycling and hiking challenges, a pony trek, a tractor run, school events, an auction and a fundraising night at Melba’s nightclub. More than 2,600 individual contributions were also made through the campaign’s online fundraising platform.

The Community Open Day was supported by Banagher Tidy Towns, Lough Derg Watersports, West Offaly Training, Sexton’s SuperValu Banagher and The Martello Coffee Dock.