ANGER AS PLANS FOR FACILITIES WILL NOT GO AHEAD Leisure centre blow
MULTI-MILLION pound plans for three new leisure centres have been shelved – because the charity behind them lacks an “operational business plan”.
Under the previous Labour administration, Northumberland County Council approved proposals for a state-of-the-art complex in the heart of Morpeth.
New leisure centres were also earmarked for Berwick and Blyth after the towns’ current facilities were deemed no longer fit for purpose.
But council leader Peter Jackson, who is also leader of the Conservatives, has now revealed the three developments will not go ahead.
He said Active Northumberland – the charity that runs libraries and leisure centres in the county – has no “operational business plan” in place for the schemes.
But Druridge Bay and Labour councillor Scott Dickinson hit out at the move, saying a huge amount of work had gone into the projects before May’s local elections.
“We identified that the Berwick Swan Centre needed a lot of money spent on it and that in Blyth it was over 60 years old and needed a huge amount of investment,” he said.
“Plans had been put in place which would benefit all of Northumberland’s residents, but they are at risk of going without with the Conservatives in power.”
The centre earmarked for Morpeth was set to house a new town library and council customer services centre, with a hotel and restaurant completing the town’s riverside development.
Meanwhile, the new complexes for Blyth and Berwick were expected to deliver “21st century facilities” for the towns. Coun Jackson said all leisure centres operating under Active Northumberland, including those currently in Berwick, Blyth and Morpeth, are being reviewed.
He said: “The most challenging aspect is we have found that Active Northumberland has no current operational business plan.
“Until we can review that and the operation of each leisure centre it would not be prudent for the county council to announce any major investment plans. This is certainly not ruling out investment in leisure centres but it will have to be in the right areas of operation, with each investment having a viable business case.
“Residents in Berwick will be pleased to know that the cabinet has agreed an investment of £118,000 in equipment for their leisure centre to update and improve the offer in the fitness suite.”