Therapeutic pool finally operational, slowly reaching the third sector
The Island Therapeutic Pool, which began operating fifteen years after its announcement, welcomed families, users, and third‑sector groups. Located in the Island Center for Disability Care, the facilities have started by serving the Cabildo’s health‑social centers and plan to expand the service progressively to other groups.
The Cabildo of Fuerteventura held an open‑day event on Friday at the Island Therapeutic Pool to introduce families, users, caregivers, and third‑sector entities to this specialized resource, now fully functional at the Island Center for Disability Care in Puerto del Rosario. The visit allowed participants to see the premises and the service in action. In this first phase the pool serves users of the various health‑social centers that attend to dependency and disability for the Cabildo of Fuerteventura. According to the island corporation, a second phase will gradually incorporate the broader social fabric linked to disability care on the island, as well as other collectives and educational settings.
A Long Road for a Pool Announced in 2011
The infrastructure was highlighted as a key asset of the Island Disability Center, whose main building was inaugurated in 2011. The Cabildo began contracting the works in 2017 and received the facility in 2019, but its commissioning stalled for several years. In the summer of 2023 the island authority launched a tender for its management. Technical problems caused further delays, and the pool only began serving its first users in the first quarter of 2026. The management contract was put out to tender in August 2023.
Third‑Sector Visit to the Operational Pool
During the open day, attendees took a guided tour of the complex, an initiative promoted by the Ministry of Social Action, Diversity, LGTBIQ+, Citizen Participation and Open Government, in collaboration with the service contractor CLECE S.A.
“This resource already provides direct benefits to the physical and emotional well‑being of its users,” said Lola García, President of the Cabildo. She emphasized that the space represents “a fundamental advance in the island’s health‑social care” and added that, although the service currently targets Cabildo‑dependent centers, the goal is to consolidate it and expand it progressively.
Víctor Alonso, Councillor for Social Action, noted that the pool, located within the Island Disability Care Complex, “answers the great demand of the island’s geography.” In a previous visit he described it as “a source of pride to offer this service in facilities that are the only ones of their kind in the Canary Islands.”
A Pool Within the Island Disability Care Complex
The complex also houses a common area, auditorium, occupational centre, residence, day‑care centre for people with disabilities, and a Mental Health Residence whose tender was recently awarded.
The Island Therapeutic Pool is staffed by a coordinator overseeing activities, a senior technician in physical‑sport animation, two activity monitors, cleaning assistants, and administrative support. Its equipment includes:
- Hydraulic lift for reduced‑mobility users
- Air‑inflated therapy beds
- Foot massagers and cervical massager
- Rotating jets and a Bali‑style waterfall
- Access ramp with handrails
- Sauna and Turkish bath
- Additional hydrotherapy devices
The technical visit concluded outside the facility with a performance by the Adisfuer band, a communal catering service, and a musical act by Abrahán.