Leisure Centre Closures North Shropshire 2024-02-22
2024-02-22
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Questions & Answers
Q1
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Whitchurch swimming pool closed in March 2020 and is set to reopen with funding, but the council plans significant budget cuts for pools and leisure centres, raising concerns about access to healthy activities.
What assessment has been made of the impact of leisure centre closures on North Shropshire? Whitchurch swimming pool closed in March 2020 but will soon reopen. However, the local council announced plans to cut budgets for pools and leisure centres next year. Given poor public transport, I am concerned about young people's ability to learn to swim and the community losing access to healthy lifestyle options. Will the Minister meet me to ensure ongoing accessibility?
Leisure centres are crucial for social and mental health outcomes, and we have provided £60 million for swimming pools across England. We recognise specific challenges such as high energy bills and provide over £300 million to support facilities up and down the country, including rural areas.
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Q2
Partial Answer
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Whitchurch swimming pool closed in March 2020 but is set to reopen. However, the council plans budget cuts for pools and leisure centres next year, raising concerns about young people's access to swimming lessons and community health.
Will the Minister meet me to discuss ensuring that young people in North Shropshire can learn to swim and the wider community has ongoing access to healthy activities despite planned budget cuts?
We provided £60 million for swimming pools to address challenges such as high energy bills. We are supporting facilities up and down the country with over £300 million, helping more people become active as part of our Get Active sports strategy.
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Q3
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Shropshire is facing budgetary pressures, raising concerns about the sustainability of local leisure facilities and their importance to community health.
Will my right hon. Friend meet me to discuss challenges faced by leisure centres in areas like Shropshire with financial constraints? He mentioned funding for swimming pools but there might be other opportunities to sustain these resources.
We are committed to providing support for swimming pools and facilities up and down the country, addressing challenges such as high energy bills. We will conduct work to identify black spots where more facilities should be provided based on local needs.
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