We had around ten thousand visitors over the summer

David Thomson and the West Braes Project made a splash by restoring Pittenweem Tidal Pool. Dawn Geddes finds out more.

- Dawn Geddes

WILD swimming may be currently en vogue, but the concept of wading through Britain's chilly waters is definitely not new. One way that we can enjoy this exhilarating activity in a safe way is by practising our lengths in one of the UK's tidal pools, which protect swimmers from being swept away by strong currents.

One of these stunning coastline structures is Pittenweem Tidal Pool, which fell into disrepair in the 1980s.

But now, thanks to a huge community effort, the Scottish sea pool has been rejuvenated and is once again fit for purpose.

David Thomson, the chairman of West Braes Project, the community charity which co-ordinated the refurbishment, tells me that Pittenweem's pool dates to the Victorian era.

"The pool goes back to the 1890s, when it was called Pittenweem Bathing Station.

"But then, in the early Eighties, the council were looking at funding issues and decided that things like tidal pools weren't a necessity, so it fell into disrepair.

"Over time it got more and more damaged. Me and a mate of mine used to go down to the pool and take the seaweed off the side and remove things like boulders and old iron from the bottom.

"Every year we could see that the stonework was getting worse, and we thought this is going to get to a stage soon when the back wall is going to go, and it won't even hold water any more.