THE site of a former seaside swimming pool will be transformed into an outdoor events facility, it was confirmed yesterday.

The South Bay Pool, in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, will be put to new use after development agency Yorkshire Forward agreed to provide £200,000 towards the development.

A similar level of support is coming from the borough council, and organisers plan to create an attractive area that can be used for outdoor artworks and events.

The site will have additional sea defences to minimise the risk of high seas overlapping the wall. It will also include a star map made from fibre-optic lights showing the night sky.

Discussions are also under way with the Arts Council and private sponsors to bring art to the site. The works should be completed by September next year.

Work is already under way to launch other projects, for which a potential £6m of Yorkshire Forward funding is available.

The agency has previously contributed £900,000 towards the reclamation of the former outdoor pool, which has been derelict since it closed in 1990.

Yorkshire Forward spokesman Geoff Needham said: "It will transform the former South Bay Pool into an environmentally attractive site, involving the filling-in of the pool, the removal of obsolete buildings and structures and now the creation of a quality amenity area."