At a time when spending cutbacks are the norm in most places, Ilkley has the chance to realise a valuable asset to the community.

Some harboured doubts about the likelihood of getting a state-of-the-art swimming pool complex for the town.

But with a very feasible-looking bid on paper, many more doubters have now come around to the idea that the multi-million pound aspirations of Ilkley Pool Group are not a flight of fancy.

Just a couple of years back, calls from members of the public for something bigger to be done about the ageing Bradford Council facilities were dismissed as highly unlikely in the prevailing economic climate. The enthusiasm — and the detailed studies — so far shown by the Ilkley Pool Group are proof of just how serious the bid is.

The key to taking this opportunity forward, however, now lies in a small input from Bradford Council.

Not dismissing the pressures on the district authority to spend money extremely carefully, a little help from the council now could sow the seeds for massive investment from external bodies. A relatively small injection of funding at this stage for the production of a robust feasibility study could result in the up-to-date leisure facilities so many residents would like to see — and an added attraction for tourists and daytrippers — without big money being spent by the council.

Bradford Council may have addressed a number of issues in the past few years, including water quality, a revamp of changing rooms, and disabled changing facilities. But it has been unable to turn the indoor pool facilities into an up-to-date leisure facility, or, some would argue, make full use of the town’s treasured Lido — itself one of Ilkley’s attractions.

A little help from the council could go an incredibly long way to securing something that would undoubtedly do so much for the Ilkley community.