City leisure centres could reopen within months

Councillor Naomi Tweddle hopes to see the centres reopen in mid-July

Two Lincoln leisure centres could reopen within months after the local council voted to "urgently" appoint a new provider.

Yarborough and Birchwood centres closed earlier this month after their operator, Active Nation, suddenly ceased trading.

The City of Lincoln Council, which contracted the company to run the facilities, hopes to have them reopened by mid-July to coincide with the start of the school summer holidays.

Speaking after an extraordinary council meeting earlier, leader councillor Naomi Tweddle said the authority was "working at rocket pace" to resolve the situation.

Both gym members and sports clubs were left out of pocket after they were locked out of all the facilities as a result of the closure.

Some outdoor facilities reopened at the weekend, but the council warned that the indoor ones, including the swimming pool and gym, would not reopen for about three months because of the time it would take to get a new contract in place.

Tweedle said that was "significantly faster" than the usual process, which "normally takes between nine and 12 months".

"There's then the issue of how quickly the new provider will be able to mobilise into the centres and we will do whatever we can to help that," she said.

The new contract will be for two years, the longest allowed under the council's emergency procurement rules.

The authority said it had already been approached by a number of potential contractors.

Active Nation blamed rising energy costs and the cost of living for the closures.

Last year, it reported a deficit of just over £1m in accounts submitted to the Charity Commission.

The Commission said it had "opened a case to assess concerns about the governance and financial management of Active Nation Limited".

The BBC has contacted Active Nation on several occasions.

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