Leisure centres need £6m investment

Powys County Council’s 15 leisure centres need a £6m investment over the next decade, and could hand over their management to a third party.

The cabinet will be asked next week to back a proposal for a Powys arms-length trust/not for profit organisation to operate all of the council’s leisure services.

It comes amidst efforts to find further cuts in the county’s budget and a task force believes that the new management option could save up to £450,000 a year through non-payment of business rates. This, it says, will allow the savings to be re-invested to protect existing leisure services in the county, and to allow much needed development and maintenance of existing facilities.

Cabinet Member for Leisure and Learning, Councillor Myfanwy Alexander said: “The leisure trusts will put our leisure facilities on a firm footing and will allow them to lead a new period of integrated community sports development within Powys. It is a development which will be tailor-made to serve the needs of the people of Powys.”