Waiting game for leisure centres

West Lothian Leisure faces an anxious two-month wait before it can see signs of a recovery as the lockdown eases over the summer.

It has been given almost £ 1m of additional support in re-profiled loans by West Lothian Council to stabilise the organisation through the Covid-19 lockdown.

All of its Xcite leisure centres in the county have been closed. Staff have been furloughed.

Key to its future will be the speed at which the lockdown is lifted.

In a report to the council’s Governance and Risk Committee before the summer break, the council’s chief executive Graham Hope, said: “Services have been working on producing remobilisation plans, and the publication of the Scottish Government route map has assisted in looking at the timelines potentially involved.”

The report added that risks were being monitored by officers.