One of St Albans’ newest leisure centres has become a victim of its own success, with youngsters at times waiting 45 minutes to have a swim.

Westminster Lodge has been using social media to warn visitors of delays to use the small pool over the summer break, because of higher demand.

There is a limit of just 75 children in the pool at a time, apparently because of health and safety rules.

A spokeswoman for the centre explained that at busier times staff were using a “banding system” to help ensure children were not left disappointed and all were given time to enjoy the pool. They are given a coloured band to wear upon entering the centre, and are called to the pool for an hour-long swim.

Youngsters have been allowed to use the soft play area for free on the occasions where there are delays.

The spokeswoman said it had been busier when it was raining.

She added: “We’re hugely grateful to the local community for their continued support of Westminster Lodge and are pleased that more families are using our facility to get active during the school holidays.

“We’ve been keeping users up-to-date on any waiting times in direct response to customer feedback, which asked us to let them know via social media if facilities are busier than usual.”