Maintaining a Facility Reading Answers

Sep 26, 2025

Maintaining a Facility Reading Answers contains 13 questions and belongs to the assessment system of the IELTS General Reading test. Maintaining a Facility: Reading Answers must be answered within 20 minutes. In this IELTS reading section, question types include: Write the correct letter and Choose ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER.

Maintaining a Facility Reading Answers offers a comprehensive overview of how Swimming in the UK evolved from segregated pools and lidos to modern innovations like adjustable floors and endless pools, though accessibility and affordability remain key challenges. To practice similar reading tests, candidates can refer to the IELTS Reading Practice Test section.

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Topic:

A. The first public swimming pool in the UK opened in 1828. After that, the number of pools developed rapidly, but they were segregated by social class, and women rarely had the opportunity to learn to swim. The catastrophic sinking of the Princess Alice on the river Thames in 1878 highlighted the dangers of not being able to swim. It also drew attention to the inequality between the sexes. Most of the deaths, when the ship sank, were of female non-swimmers, dragged down by their long skirts. Changes in swimming habits went hand in hand with changes to social attitudes. Gradually, it became more acceptable for the sexes to mix while wearing swimsuits and more swimming pools were constructed.

The 1930s are considered the ‘golden age of lidos’ when 169 of them were built across the UK. Lidos are outdoor swimming pools, which were at the height of their popularity in the twentieth century before foreign holidays became affordable.

B. Lidos typically had sunbeds and lawns around them for sunbathing and the emphasis was more on recreation than serious swimming. Visits to the local lido would last all day. Families would bring a picnic and it was a relatively affordable way to spend a day during the summer holidays. Most people over 50 have happy memories of splashing around at their local lido.

Today there are only about 80 lidos in the country. It is not only the possibility of travelling abroad which led to the closure of so many outdoor pools. The British climate means that there are only a few months of the year where open-air swimming is attractive to the majority of people. Maintaining a facility used so little became unfeasible in times of cuts in public spending.

C. However, it is not just lidos that have shut down. In the three years to March 2022, Britain lost over 65 public pools, including indoor pools. The number of children not learning to swim has increased, which has been called an ‘absolute health and welfare disaster’. While most can still access a pool if they are willing to travel, not all pools are suitable for activities such as synchronised swimming, diving and water polo.

The pools that remain have changed dramatically from the pools of the 20th century. People who were young then remember nearly every pool had diving boards and deep ends. From the end of the last century, pool renovations often involved removing diving boards and replacing diving boards with flumes (long tunnel-like slides) and wave machines. The two main reasons for these changes were cost and safety. A 5 foot (1.5 metre) deep pool is easier and cheaper to heat and maintain than a 12 foot (3.6 metre) deep pool. Diving accidents are the fourth most common cause of spinal injury leading to paralysis. It became apparent that the best way to avoid lawsuits was to remove the diving boards.

D. Unfortunately, both regular swimming and other pool-based activities have become less accessible to those with lower incomes. It could also mean that those who want to swim will turn to less safe options, such as rivers, lakes and the sea, leading to an increase in swimming accidents. Although there are now fewer diving pools, new technology has brought some hope to divers. The adjustable swimming pool floor enables the same pool to change depth from as shallow as 2 feet (0.5 metres) to as deep as 13 feet (4 metres). This mechanism has been adopted by many sports centres keen to offer a wide range of pool users, while only needing to maintain one pool. Such pools offer a ‘depth timetable’, which lets swimmers know when the pool will be shallow enough for children and non-swimmers or when it will be deep enough to use the diving boards. For facilities very limited in space, the adjustable floor can be moved to maximum height to turn the pool into a dance floor or meeting space.

E. Another innovation in swimming technology is the ‘endless pool’. Ideal for those who want to swim regularly, but don’t have the space for a full-sized pool, the endless pool is to swimming what the treadmill is to running. The current in the water is controlled by a propeller, which enables you to keep swimming without turning as in a very small pool. Not only is it a space-saver, it is also popular with athletes, who can adjust the current to increase resistance and get a more intense workout. Many professional swimmers choose these pools in preference to a regular pool. There is no doubt that swimming will remain a popular pastime with all ages, and that swimming pools will continue to develop with changes in technology and lifestyles.

QUESTIONS 28-35

The text is divided into 5 sections, A-E. Which section contains the following information?

Write the correct letter A-E.

28. The limitations of some swimming pools.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: "…not all pools are suitable for activities such as synchronised swimming, diving and water polo."

Keywords: limitations, pools, suitable activities

Keyword Location: Paragraph C, lines 4–5

Explanation: The text here highlights that although pools exist, their design limits activities like diving or water polo, showing their limitations.

29. Two main reasons outdoor swimming pools shut down.

Answer: B

Supporting statement: "…the British climate… Maintaining a facility used so little became unfeasible in times of cuts in public spending."

Keywords: climate, cuts in public spending, outdoor pools

Keyword Location: Paragraph B, lines 7–10

Explanation: The closure of outdoor pools (lidos) is explained by poor weather and financial constraints, making them unsustainable.

30. An alternative way for elite swimmers to train.

Answer: E

Supporting statement: "…the endless pool… popular with athletes, who can adjust the current to increase resistance and get a more intense workout."

Keywords: endless pool, athletes, alternative training

Keyword Location: Paragraph E, lines 2–6

Explanation: Endless pools are described as a training tool for professional swimmers, offering an alternative to regular pools.

31. Growth of awareness of the importance of swimming.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: "The catastrophic sinking of the Princess Alice… highlighted the dangers of not being able to swim."

Keywords: importance of swimming, sinking, Princess Alice

Keyword Location: Paragraph A, lines 4–6

Explanation: The tragedy emphasized swimming’s importance, raising awareness of the risks of not knowing how to swim.

32. Places where poorer people now swim.

Answer: D

Supporting statement: "…those who want to swim will turn to less safe options, such as rivers, lakes and the sea…"

Keywords: poorer people, rivers, lakes, sea

Keyword Location: Paragraph D, lines 2–4

Explanation: The text shows that due to limited access, poorer people resort to unsafe natural water sources.

33. Why pools are shallower than they used to be.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: "…A 5 foot (1.5 metre) deep pool is easier and cheaper to heat and maintain than a 12 foot (3.6 metre) deep pool."

Keywords: shallow pools, cost, maintenance

Keyword Location: Paragraph C, lines 9–11

Explanation: Pools became shallower to reduce costs and improve safety, making them more economical.

34. Flexible use of the available space.

Answer: D

Supporting statement: "…the adjustable floor can be moved to maximum height to turn the pool into a dance floor or meeting space."

Keywords: adjustable floor, flexible use, meeting space

Keyword Location: Paragraph D, lines 9–11

Explanation: Modern technology allows pools to be adapted for multiple purposes, showing efficient space use.

35. The period when outdoor pools were constructed.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: "The 1930s are considered the ‘golden age of lidos’ when 169 of them were built…"

Keywords: 1930s, golden age, lidos

Keyword Location: Paragraph A, lines 10–12

Explanation: The 1930s saw a boom in outdoor pool construction, known as the golden age of lidos.

QUESTIONS 36-40

Choose ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER from the text for each.

When the first swimming pools were built, it was not common for (36).............

Answer: women

Supporting statement: "…women rarely had the opportunity to learn to swim."

Keywords: women, opportunity, learn to swim

Keyword Location: Paragraph A, line 2

Explanation: The text shows that when swimming pools were first built, women were excluded and had little chance to swim, highlighting inequality in access.

to have access to them. Awareness of the value of being able to swim grew after the (37)...........

Answer: sinking

Supporting statement: "The catastrophic sinking of the Princess Alice on the river Thames in 1878 highlighted the dangers of not being able to swim."

Keywords: sinking, Princess Alice, dangers

Keyword Location: Paragraph A, lines 4–6

Explanation: The sinking of the Princess Alice made people realize the life-threatening consequences of not knowing how to swim, spreading awareness.

of a famous boat in London. Many of the people who drowned did so because of the weight of their (38)............

Answer: skirts

Supporting statement: "Most of the deaths… were of female non-swimmers, dragged down by their long skirts."

Keywords: deaths, female non-swimmers, skirts

Keyword Location: Paragraph A, lines 6–7

Explanation: Women drowned due to heavy skirts pulling them down, showing how clothing played a fatal role in swimming accidents.

As time went by, men and women were allowed to swim together dressed in (39)...........

Answer: swimsuits

Supporting statement: "Gradually, it became more acceptable for the sexes to mix while wearing swimsuits…"

Keywords: acceptable, sexes mix, swimsuits

Keyword Location: Paragraph A, lines 8–9

Explanation: Over time, social changes allowed men and women to swim together in swimsuits, marking a shift in cultural attitudes.

,which had not been permissible before. Lidos were the most popular in the (40).............

Answer: 1930s

Supporting statement: "The 1930s are considered the ‘golden age of lidos’ when 169 of them were built…"

Keywords: 1930s, golden age, lidos

Keyword Location: Paragraph A, lines 10–12

Explanation: The 1930s marked the peak construction of outdoor lidos, remembered as their golden age of popularity.

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