Six leisure centres closed since the beginning of lockdown are to reopen in Stockport next week.
Gyms were allowed to open their doors again from July 25, but most council-owned facilities remained shut due to the impact on its sports provider Life Leisure.
At present, only the gym and class studio facilities at two sites, Stockport Sports Village in Woodley and Houldsworth Village in Reddish, are open to the public.
The authority has faced criticism for taking ‘too long’ to resolve the situation, which has meant residents have been unable to return to their fitness regimes.
But there has now been a breakthrough in the ‘complex discussions’ between the council and Life Leisure, and six centres will now reopen over the course of next week.
Announcements on remaining facilities will be made ‘as soon as possible’.
Coun Sheila Bailey, cabinet member for Sustainable Stockport, said: “ We were faced with a situation that was difficult and it has taken a few weeks to come to a resolution.
“But that has been done and it’s only been done because there has been a huge amount of commitment and cooperation from both organisations.”
The reopening schedule is below.
From Monday, August 24 the following centres will reopen:
- Grand Central
- Brinnington
From Wednesday 26 August the following centres will reopen:
- Avondale (dry facilities)
- Hazel Grove
From Friday 28 August the following centres will reopen:
- Cheadle
- Romiley
Coun Bailey said she was delighted that the leisure centres were due to open again.
She said: “It’s obviously good news for people’s physical and mental health. I know that people have been wanting them to open for some time, and the others will be open as soon as possible.
“There have been considerably difficult discussions that have had to be resolved that have required a lot of time and effort being put in by council and Life Leisure officers and members of their board.
“They have this week reached a point where they could safely and securely open up the first six and that’s what’s happening next week. Life Leisure was impacted hugely by the closure and lockdown and obviously that had a financial impact on them.”
Explaining the reasons for the four-week delay, she said that, as well as financial issues, the ‘practicalities of opening and making sure the centres were safe and secure’ also had to be addressed.
She said: "The discussions have gone on for several weeks and earlier this week it got to the point where all the issues have been ironed out and everybody was able to come to an agreement, which meant we were able to go ahead to go ahead an open next week.
“The others will follow as soon as possible, but thanks are due to our council officers and and Life Leisure for getting us to this point and the co-operation which means we can move forward.”
The episode has also seen the council’s controlling Labour group once again at loggerheads with the Lib Dem opposition, which has the same number of councillors.
The Lib Dems had accused Labour of letting down residents by not getting the centres open sooner.
But Labour, through Coun Bailey, hit back, saying the group was well aware of the ‘urgent discussions’ taking place and their 'irresponsible' intervention could have put them in jeopardy.
Further information on leisure and sports facilities available in Stockport can be found at https://www.stockport.gov.uk/leisure-centres-map
