The main pool at the National Sports Centre (NSC) will close on Monday so investigations can be carried out into the long-running issue with damaged tiles.

Last month, Education, Sport and Culture Minister Daphne Caine admitted in the House of Keys the root cause is still not understood more than a year after the issue was first identified.

A five-metre stretch covering two lanes of the pool have been out of action since November 2023 due to an issue with the tiles.

At the end of January Mrs Caine said: ‘The fault was first identified in November 2023. Since then a series of tests and analysis has been undertaken. Once the department understands the root cause, repair works will be carried out.

‘If the department fixes the tiles without fully understanding the root cause I would be concerned it could happen again.

‘It is taking this amount of time because it is a complex issue and once the root cause is identified the repair works will be carried out.

‘The NSC has had divers down to inspect the tiles and there are a number of discussions ongoing.’

The Department of Education, Sport and Culture now says the lane swimming pool will be closed between 11.30am and 4pm on Monday so the issues can be further looked at.

The closure will not affect school swimming lessons and the pool will reopen in time for public swimming lessons at 4pm.

This week Mrs Caine said: ‘We understand this may be frustrating but it's essential to identify the root cause before repairs are made – to avoid it happening again. Thank you to pool users for their patience and understanding.’

Further updates will be shared once investigations are complete. The leisure pool will remain open as usual.

The swimming complex at the sports centre has been plagued by problems since a £4.4m revamp began in 2018, which led to lengthy delays in reopening the leisure pool and water slides.