Avalon Leisure, which operates three venues on behalf of Mendip District Council (MDC), has shut the swimming pool at Wells Leisure Centre due to an outbreak of gastroenteritis.

On 3 December, the local authority said it had instructed the operator to close the pool after a number of cases of the stomach bug were reported by users of the facility.

Avalon Leisure has now revealed the pool will stay shut until January, with the water found to have been infected by Cryptosporidium from an external source.

A statement by Avalon Leisure managing director Rob Taylor said the pool had been due to close on 12 December for scheduled maintenance, and will reopen on 2 January.