A father and his children have been turned away from a swimming pool in Bromley due to a 'health and safety' rule.

Andy McLeod said The Pavilion Leisure Centre in Kentish Way stopped him taking his four-year-old and 18-month-old into the pool at the same time.

The pool said its rule was two adults are needed to take two kids to the pool if one child is between the age of nought and three and the other is between the age of four and seven.

If both children are between nought and three, one adult can take them swimming. If both children are between four and seven then one adult can take them to the pool.

This could prevent single parents from taking their children to the pool, according to Mr McLeod.

Mr McLeod, 36, of Widmore Road, said he had taken time off work to spend time with his children.

Mr McLeod said: “My four-year-old was really upset about it and I feel as if they should have some explanation as to why this rule change has come in. I have taken most of the summer off to look after the kids and I can’t go to the local pool and I don’t know why.

“After he had stopped crying and he had been given a lolly to appease him he had lots of questions as to why he couldn’t go swimming. I told him the people who the owned the pool said he wouldn’t be safe but he didn’t understand.”

He added: "I was angry because people throw health and safety at you without understanding why it is in place. If there is a health and safety incident at the pool maybe this should be told to the staff so they can let customers know."

Two other Bromley health centres, Walnuts Leisure Centre and Nuffield Health Fitness & Wellbeing Gym, said that they did not have any policy in place where a single adult could not take two children in to their pools.

Head of marketing and communications for Pavillion, Lorraine Stack, said: “All of our policies are in line with safe guarding and health and safety legislation and good practice.”