The winning bidder for the historic Arthur Hill swimming pool has been revealed after months of protest over the secrecy surrounding the sale.

Reading Borough Council (RBC) has agreed to sell the site to OOAK (One of a Kind) Developments.

The council refused to name its preferred bidder until the terms of the sale were agreed, due to commercial confidentiality.

Councillor Graeme Hoskin, lead member for Sport, said: "We are striving to be as transparent as we possibly can within the constraints of confidentiality and procurement law."

The Reading-based real estate company is currently reviewing its development proposals for the site, which may include options for residential redevelopment, and which will be subject to obtaining planning permission.

The announcement follows a detailed bidding process last year, with the preferred bidder agreed in closed session at a meeting of the council’s Policy Committee in July.

RBC has committed to invest a sum equivalent to the capital receipt arising from the sale of the Arthur Hill site into the planned new leisure facilities in Reading.

Campaigners had planned to undertake a 'document search' at the council offices to find details of the sale of the pool if the council did not reveal it by Friday, January 25.

Peter Burt, of the Arthur Hill Campaign, said: “We’ve won! Our Operation Transparency campaign to force the council to reveal the identity of the purchaser of Arthur Hill Pool has been a resounding success.

He added: “We will be contacting the prospective purchasers of the pool to ask them what their intentions for the site are, and we will also be continuing to press the council for full details of the tender process through which the winning bidder was selected.”

OOAK Owner Arjun Singh Gill is a former schoolboy entrepreneur turned property tycoon.

He started his own estate agency at the age of 17 with the help of his father and set up OOAK Developments in 2015.

Born at the Royal Berkshire Hospital, he went to The Forest School in Winnersh, and now lives on King’s Road.

He was nominated for Entrepreneur of the Year at the Pride of Reading awards last year alongside his friend and occasional business partner Piers Knight.

Arthur Hill, on King's Road, was closed by RBC in October 2016 after falling into disrepair.