PRINCE Charles was joined by an Olympic swimmer as he opened a refurbished open-air pool which was saved from demolition.

The swimming pool in New Cumnock, East Ayrshire, has undergone significant refurbishment following funding from the Dumfries House Outreach Programme and is more energy efficient.

It was saved from demolition by the community-run group Afton Water Leisure.

Built in 1966, the pool is one of the few heated clean water open-air pools in Scotland.

The new-look pool, designed in a “lido” style, has been made more energy efficient and given a significant facelift through a construction project which started in September 2016 and was finished this month.

The Prince, who is known as the Duke of Rothesay in Scotland, was joined by Rio 2016 double silver-medallist Duncan Scott and local children as he opened the facility on Wednesday.

Since Dumfries House in Ayrshire was saved for the nation in 2007 by a consortium led by the Duke of Rothesay, it has provided “heritage-led regeneration” for the local community.

Through the Dumfries House Outreach Programme, the charity has led and been involved in a number of projects including the rejuvenation of New Cumnock Town Hall.

The pool is 25 metres long and, for increased efficiency, the depth was reduced from 2.9m to 1.5m in the deep end and from 1.1m to 0.8m in the shallow end.

A statement from Dumfries House on its Facebook social media page read: “Not long now until the New Cumnock Pool reopens. The Dumfries House Trust raised £30,000 for an impressive restoration and we can’t wait to share the results with you on June 14.

“The pool will benefit from new buildings, including sparkling changing and shower facilities.”