Wiltshire gets leisure cash

Wiltshire Council has worked with local partners Places Leisure and others to apply for funding from the Government's National Leisure Recovery Fund, and has been allocated £865k.

The Fund was established to help local authority contracted facilities to reopen. £100m has been given by the Government to Sport England.

Sam Fox, Wiltshire Council Corporate Director said, "We are very pleased to have received this funding on behalf of our partner operators and this funding will assist them with reopening our leisure centres as soon as government restrictions allow.

"Leisure centres and our leisure staff will have a key role to play in helping people get back to leading physically active lives as the nation recovers from the pandemic."

The Government has already allowed some outdoor sports facilities to reopen, and formalised sports such as football, golf and tennis to resume.

Some Wiltshire Council outdoor leisure facilities have reopened include the tennis courts at Springfield Community Campus in Corsham, the football pitches at Five Rivers Health and Wellbeing Centre in Salisbury for club block bookings, and the tennis courts at the Nadder Centre in Tisbury. However, this does not include any changing or toilet facilities, and no leisure centre buildings will reopen on this date.

Leisure centres and gyms will re-open to the public from 12 April for individual socially distanced use and indoor adult group sports and exercise classes will resume from 17 May.