The UK swimming pool and spa sectors are set to celebrate one of their most successful years in nearly a decade at the forthcoming 2015 UK Pool & Spa Awards.
Now entering their sixth year, the UK Pool & Spa Awards will be held at The Gallery at the NEC on Friday January 23 and are open to all businesses, regardless of trade association affiliation.
A complete sell out last year, the UK Pool & Spa Awards are open to an estimated 1,500 businesses involved in the multimillion provision of water leisure both at home and across a variety of public sectors from hotels and health clubs to schools and public pools.
The prize-giving event will begin at 5pm with a business networking style reception, sponsored by Lonza, that will include all of the companies involved in sponsoring the 2015 competition – all helping to raise the profile of individual winners and the industry as a whole.
Winners will once again be presented with their trophies by Olympic bronze medallist and sports personality Stephen Parry who is making a popular return to the event. Stephen is no stranger to the pool and spa sector and runs his own mobile swimming pool business, Total Swimming.
“The awards are a great way to recognise the outstanding achievements within the pool and spa industry and to celebrate some of the best projects that have been completed over the past year,” says Stephen.
“Swimming is a big part of my life, and I’m delighted to be given the opportunity to meet the people behind the pools and to be a part of the awards evening.”
“With the generous support of our sponsors, the UK Pool & Spa Awards are designed to give everyone involved in the industry an opportunity to promote their business achievements as well as the industry as a whole,” comments Christina Connor, editor of the leading and independent trade publication Pool & Spa Scene.
“This year, the hot tub and above ground pool sectors have enjoyed a remarkable summer with sales figures returning to the peak of 1996, according to many leading brands,” she adds.
“Even new build projects are enjoying a resurgence, while renovations and upgrades, especially improving energy efficiency, are expected to provide the best figures for both the residential and commercial swimming pool markets for years.”
Deliberately timed to coincide with the UK Pool & Spa Expo that is being held in Hall 10 at Birmingham’s NEC, the UK Pool & Spa Awards are an independent standalone event run by Waterland Media, the publishers of Pool & Spa Scene magazine.
A new twist this year will see winners and sponsors gather on the Pool & Spa Scene stand in the central hub of the UK Pool & Spa Expo show, for a post awards brunch, sponsored by the specialist export support team, SCS.
ANOTHER FIRST
Another first for the awards this year is a new award category designed to recognise the contribution of architects and designers involved in water leisure projects. The award is sponsored by Sprayed Concrete Solutions.
Last year’s competition saw nearly 40 companies win awards across 21 categories. Entries for the 2015 competition open on August 11th and are handled completely on-line. Voting will be split between the public and the international voting jury and will also be internet-based.
2015 COMPETITION TIMELINE
- Competition entries open:Â 10am on Monday August 11
- Competition entries close at 5pm on Tuesday November 11
- On-line public voting OPENS Friday November 14
- Online public voting closes at noon on Friday December 12, 2014
- Final judging will conclude on Monday December 15, 2014
