Chichester and Midhurst leisure centres to reopen this weekend

Westgate Leisure Centre, The Grange Community and Leisure Centre and Bourne Leisure Centre will reopen their doors on Saturday (July 25).

It comes after the Government, on July 9, gave the green light for leisure facilities to reopen after being forced to close for almost four months due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The centres are managed by sports and leisure operator Everyone Active, in partnership with Chichester District Council.

Stuart Mills, Everyone Active’s area contract manager, said: “We’re very much looking forward to reopening the centres and welcoming back the local community.

“After being closed for nearly four months, this latest announcement from Government is the news the leisure industry has been eagerly awaiting.

“Giving people the opportunity to resume activity and exercise in their leisure centre will go a long way to maintaining the good health of local communities.

“We’ve been overwhelmed with the support we have received from customers during these unprecedented times, and we’re so grateful. Like many other industries, leisure has been greatly affected by the lockdown.”

Swimming pools at Westgate Leisure Centre will reopen from August 1, with a lane booking system in place. Swimming lessons will also re-start from August 1.

“Ensuring our colleagues and customers remain safe is our number one priority and we have carefully considered the strict measurements to ensure we adhere to the guidance,” Mr Mills continued.

“We will be contacting all customers directly over the coming days regarding the centres reopening. We look forward to welcoming everyone back and thanking them for their patience.”

Everyone Active procedures will ensure social distancing is managed throughout the centres and regular cleaning is maintained.

Councillor Roy Briscoe, cabinet member for community services, said: “I’m sure that all of our residents and visitors will be as pleased as I am to hear this very welcome news.

“As we all know, exercise is not only important for keeping fit but it also has a really positive role to play in improving mental wellbeing. We know that many people have missed having access to leisure facilities during the lockdown, and so it is great news that our centres are now ready to reopen safely.”

Whilst its 200 leisure centres across the country were closed, Everyone Active launched a ‘comprehensive package’ of online workouts for people to do whilst on lockdown, along with streaming live classes across its social media pages.

A spokesperson said: “It also pledged to donate half the cost of a membership to charity – The National Emergencies Trust – if customers continued to pay.

“Consequently, the operator raised over £400k for those most in need during the pandemic.”

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