More than 7,000 people have told council bosses in Gateshead how they feel about controversial leisure centre closure plans.
At least two facilities could be shut down next year because of budget cuts, a prospect that has sparked warnings of a deterioration in people’s physical and mental wellbeing. The Gateshead Leisure Centre in Saltwell, Dunston Leisure Centre, and potentially the sports hall at Birtley Leisure Centre have been deemed the sites most at risk of being lost, after being branded the “least sustainable”.
Amid widespread dismay at the proposals, locals have been urged to make their voice heard as campaigners bid to save the centres from closure. After an extended public consultation on the plans ended on Tuesday night, Gateshead Council bosses have confirmed that they received a total of 7,419 responses.
Read More: Protest over Gateshead leisure centre closures as campaigners vow to 'fight back' against cuts
A protest was staged outside the civic centre on Tuesday, as demonstrators pleaded with the local authority to rethink their plans ahead of a final decision being made in January. The council, MPs, sports clubs, residents, and ChronicleLive also united in a call last week for the Government to step in with critical funding to save the leisure centres.
Council leader Martin Gannon has pledged to keep up the pressure on ministers, but warned that a failure to secure new cash from the Government would leave local decision-makers with “no option” but to approve the devastating closures. The Labour councillor said: “We are currently in a cost-of-living crisis, and rising inflation is putting additional pressures on the council to deliver critical services. At a time when costs are soaring, our budgets are being cut and there are expectations from residents that we can continue to deliver the same level of service as in previous decades – but this is simply impossible.
“While the consultation has been completed, our efforts to lobby for government funding will not stop. We are seeking an additional £6.6m per annum in ring fenced funding to safeguard our leisure services across the borough. If this is not achieved, then sadly we have no option but to rationalise our leisure services.”
Gateshead Council has had its budget slashed by £179m since 2010 and is facing a financial black hole of £55m over the next five years. It also revealed further plans this week to make £14.5m of savings, on top of the leisure centres closures, in 2023/24 – hitting frontline services including park maintenance and bins.
The authority said it would now analyse the thousands of responses to the leisure centres consultation before a decision on their future is made at a cabinet meeting on January 24.
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