New Hope For Three Denbighshire Leisure Sites

Last week, Clwyd Leisure announced that it was closing Rhyl Sun Centre, Prestatyn's Nova Centre and the North Wales Indoor Bowls Centre because of funding issues. Now there is renewed hope that they could be reopened and run by Denbighshire Council.

The council is carrying out a full condition survey of the sites to see if they could reopen. The 125 staff under threat would be the first to be offered jobs, it said

New hope for Rhyl's Sun Centre

Having been established thirteen years ago by the council to run these facilities on its behalf, Clwyd Leisure had its funding of £200,000 for the year 2014/15 withdrawn because of concerns over the way it was being run. Trustees of the not-for-profit organisation had been in discussions with the authority for months over a possible takeover, but they ended without resolution on Friday.

Clwyd Leisure said it had no choice but to close the company down and shut the facilities with immediate effect. Denbighshire council's corporate director, Rebecca Maxwell, said members of the authority felt they had done all they could to help.

"The council has worked closely with Clwyd Leisure over recent years to try and help address the issues that have been raised around the management and running of the facilities," she said.
"We feel that we have done our utmost to assist the company.  Once the keys have been handed over to the council, our staff will be carrying out a full condition survey. That will allow us to determine if we are going to be able to get them open."

Ms Maxwell said the council recognised this was an unsettling time for staff, but said should it decide to take over the running of the facilities, current Clwyd Leisure staff would be considered first.  70 full time staff and 55 part-time employees are affected by the closure.

Denbighshire council will also look at promoting suitable vacancies within the council if they become available, she added.

Huw Jones, the council cabinet's lead member for leisure and tourism, said visitors had not been impressed by facilities such as the Sun Centre. "The comments we get back from visitors are that they won't go back to the Sun Centre ... we're trying to address that," he said.

"The plans we have put in place for Rhyl and the plans we have got for Rhyl are very ambitious but the Sun Centre unfortunately have let themselves and Rhyl down."