The easing of Covid-19 restrictions has brought with it many challenges for Council, however the safe reopening of facilities and safety of customers will always been paramount. As restrictions have eased Council Leisure facilities are continuing to operate in a complex environment with multiple operational restrictions impacting on service delivery. Social distancing measures, capacity, and staff resourcing due to Covid-19 and self-isolation, contrast with public expectation as demand continues to increase.
Council will continue to stress test facilities and evolve programmes, including the Aquatic programme, to ensure a high quality safe environment for all customers. The next phase of reopening will include the reintroduction of swimming lessons and an increase to capacity in pools and classes as part of the winter programme. In the interim to address demand at South Lake Leisure Centre in particular, additional public morning swims will be introduced week commencing 20th September.
An Expression of Interest (EOI) will open for swimming clubs in October for the forthcoming year. The EOI process will be an open and transparent process based on agreed principles in the Council’s Aquatic Strategy.
As the Covid-19 situation continues to evolve our facilities are being adapted to mitigate against service disruption, however this may not always be possible leading to changes in planned programmes. We appreciate this causes frustration and we thank all our customers for their on-going patience at this challenging time.