Waterworld & Chirk Leisure Centre to Benefit From £1m Investment

Waterworld in Wrexham is set to undergo a significant refurbishment following the announcement of a capital loan of £1 million from Welsh Government.

Improvements are also planned at Chirk Leisure & Activity Centre to be funded by this loan.

The investment has been provided by the ‘Sports Facilities Capital Loan Scheme’ (SFCLS) and is intended to provide interest free loans to local authorities to invest in sport and recreation facilities.

SFCLS offers interest free capital loans of between £500k and £1million to contribute to a “local landscape of modern, fit for purpose, facilities designed to increase participation in sport and recreation”.

Creating an Active Wales is set out as one of the company’s visions – stating ‘that the majority of children and adults regularly use leisure facilities and sports clubs’. The provision of more accessible, attractive and fit for the future local sport and active recreation facilities will help to turn this into reality.

The refurbishment at Waterworld includes re-modelling the ground floor to provide a new reception, cafe and expanded state-of-the-art fitness facility that will improve the customer experience, improve the commerciality of the Centre and retain more customers exercising more often

The news of Waterworld’s refurbishment is a stark contrast to the position the leisure centre was in just over two years ago when a report stated that the facility had reached the end of its design life.

Plans to demolish the facility and replace it was a £12m leisure centre were later unveiled.

However the plans were scrapped last year when it was announced that the plans were no longer ‘financially viable’ and that ‘the life of Waterworld could extend to the year 2035’.

Chirk Leisure Centre will also benefit from the loan, with the interior space set to be re-modelled to create a new studio and an improved fitness space.

Cllr Hugh Jones, the Lead Member for Communities and Partnerships said: “This capital loan will ensure that Waterworld remains a flagship leisure centre serving the people of Wrexham whilst also improving the customer offer at Chirk Leisure & Activity Centre. Our commitment to thriving local leisure facilities is built on our partnership with Freedom Leisure which will help to sustain our services at a time of budgetary limitations”.

Jeremy Rowe, Freedom Leisure Head of Operations, Wales & West added: “We are greatly encouraged by the Creating An Active Wales vision to inspire more adults and children to be active at local leisure facilities. We are confident that by working closely with Wrexham County Borough Council we can create and manage facilities that will be welcoming and accessible to the whole community.

“The investment in improvements is obviously very important, but the encouragement and support of activity programmes is crucial to setting the scene for people and boosting their engagement in the facilities that are available.”

Last year the Welsh Government announced that local authorities across Wales were able to apply for £5million in interest free loans to improve local sport and recreational facilities.

Speaking about the Welsh Government capital loan, The Deputy Minister, Ken Skates, AM, said: “We launched our Sports Facilities Capital Loan Scheme to help local authorities find new and exciting ways to encourage whole families to enjoy and take part in sporting activities in their area.

“We recognise that this is a challenging financial time for authorities and I am pleased we are supporting them to create the right facilities in the right places, breaking down barriers to sport so that people of all abilities, ages and backgrounds can enjoy its many benefits.”

Last month Wrexham.com reported that Freedom Leisure had been appointed the new owners of Wrexham’s leisure facilities.