At-risk leisure centre gets £50k emergency boost

Dalton Leisure Centre needs to raise money for its long-term future

A community leisure centre at "serious risk of closure" has secured a £50,000 emergency funding boost to get it through to the new year.

Dalton Leisure Centre in Dalton-in-Furness, Cumbria, opened in the 1980s, with manager Shaun Fisher saying the centre was doing "really well" and was like a "second home" to some people.

Despite that, repair work and rising energy costs have meant the centre has struggled through November and now wants to raise a further £50,000 to secure its long-term future.

A spokesperson for Westmorland and Furness Council, which funded the grant, said "the council recognises the valuable role that the leisure centre plays in the local community".

The grant is made up of £25,000 from the council's funds and £25,000 from its Furness Locality Board.

The council said as well as immediate financial support, it was continuing to offer advice to Dalton Leisure Centre management and trustees to identify opportunities for the centre moving forward.

'We've had tears'

Mr Fisher, who has been manager of the centre since July 2023, said the grant would get the centre through until the end of December.

"Our outgoings on four bills, the HMRC pension, water, gas, electric, we're looking at £25,000 to £27,000 a month," he said.

"Then wages are £30,000 to £32,000 a month, so we have to bring in close to £60,000 to £70,000 a month just to make profit."

The centre hopes to raise a further £50,000 through community fundraising during January and February to secure its long-term future.

Mr Fisher said: "For the people of Dalton this has been like a second home for them.

"A lot of people have come in, we've had tears, we've had people genuinely devastated and it would break them [if the centre closed]."