Falmouth's leisure centre looks to be facing closure as no affordable solutions have been found to keep the site open.

A huge blow after months of work and campaigning to protect the leisure centre and the headland. However, it seems Wadebridge Leisure Centre will be saved after a bid went through.

Cornwall Council's cabinet is due to hold an extraordinary meeting on Friday, March 4th, 2022, to consider recommendations for the future of two of Cornwall's leisure centres.

Ahead of the meeting, Cornwall Council said today (Monday 28th) there is "no viable bid" to operate Ships and Castles leisure centre.

This means that if the Cabinet decide that all avenues to find a workable solution have been exhausted, the Council could be working with GLL to close Ships and Castles leisure centre in Falmouth by March 31st, 2022.

Cornwall Council portfolio holder for customers Richard Pears said:

"We will discuss all the options at the Cabinet meeting, but it is with a heavy heart that I have to report to them that we have not been able to find a workable and affordable solution to keep the leisure centre in Falmouth open.

"We, and the organisations that came forward to express an interest in running the leisure centre, have worked tirelessly to try and find a way to keep it open, and I would like to thank all the organisations and stakeholders involved for their efforts and commitment.

"However, the bids put forward to operate the leisure centre in Falmouth, all relied on the Council being able to heavily subsidise its running in the long term. We have said all along that this is precisely what we cannot do.

"As we explained at the beginning of this process, we, alongside other local authorities, need to make some difficult decisions to ensure our critical services and statutory obligations are met - bearing in mind that thereis no statutory requirement for local authorities to provide leisure services.

"No one underestimates the benefits of fitness and exercise,butthe membership figures remain stubbornly low.The pandemic has affected the choices that people make, and they are accessing fitness and exercise in different ways.

"This has affected their viability, which I think has become clear to those organisations that came forward with proposals for running them. None could find a way of running Ships and Castles in Falmouth without a very significant subsidy from the Council."

If the Cabinet decides to approve the recommendations, the Council will support GLL to decommission the leisure centre in Falmouth and provide support for the affected staff. Wadebridge Leisure Centre will remain open while work continues to progress a potentially viable bid to run it longer term.

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