NHDC agrees package of financial support for leisure centres

PR Date: Friday, 22 January 2021 - 5:00pm

At a meeting of North Herts District Council’s (NHDC) Full Council on 21 January, Councillors agreed a revised package of financial support to ensure the continued delivery of Council owned leisure facilities in the district to support the health and wellbeing of our residents.

The facilities, operated by Stevenage Leisure Ltd (SLL) under a contract with NHDC, have been heavily impacted by coronavirus (COVID-19) since the start of the pandemic. This has been a national trend affecting fitness and leisure facilities throughout the UK.

In order to reduce the potential spread of COVID-19, the government instructed all gyms and leisure centres to close in March, in the period of national restrictions during November, and again in the current period of national restrictions. This has left SLL facing significant ongoing costs but no income, causing a serious threat to the viability of sport and leisure provision at the centres, prompting NHDC’s Cabinet to propose additional funding to cover the closures and recovery, so that the facilities can remain viable and available for residents.

When the leisure centres have been closed, SLL have done all that they can to reduce their costs, including furloughing staff. But they have still had to maintain the buildings, deal with customer queries and plan for when they can reopen. Due to social distancing they have also had a lot less income than usual when they have been able to open.

The financial support will reimburse any losses, which will help to secure health and wellbeing provision for residents in the future. The support to SLL in 2020/21 is forecast to be £2.45m with further financial support of £2m forecast in 2021/22. Some of this cost will be covered by grants and compensation received, or expected to be received,  from government, but the majority will come from NHDC funds.

Cllr Steve Jarvis, NHDC’s Executive Member for Leisure said: “Our much-loved Leisure Centres are really important assets for our local community. They will play an essential role in supporting people’s physical and mental health once the current lockdown restrictions are eased, so it is vitally important we do everything we can to protect them and support our leisure partner through this challenging period.”

“Their loss would have a negative impact on the health and wellbeing of residents in North Herts at the worst possible time. It is therefore important that we provide the necessary financial assistance to safeguard their future.”

Cllr Ian Albert, NHDC’s Executive Member for Finance said: “We have already provided emergency financial relief to ensure our Leisure Centres could survive this crisis and if we want them to be able to welcome customers back through the doors, it’s essential we provide this ongoing support package.

“We believe what we’ve done is the right way forward, the costed way forward, the sensible way forward.  Yes, it comes with risks and challenges but we do think this is the most sensible, practical solution. It will be subject to constant review and if there are changes in the coming financial year we will come back to full Council for a further discussion.”

Richard Allan, SLL Operations Manager said: “We recognise and appreciate the ongoing support we are receiving from NHDC. Without the financial support to offset some of the losses incurred, there would be a real risk of us not being able to reopen the centres and deliver a leisure service for the residents of North Herts. We look forward to reinstating the service and welcoming members and customers back to their local leisure centre as soon as we are permitted.”