Please read the following Briefing Note about management of leisure centres in Wiltshire County. This information will affect the Lime Kiln Centre in Royal Wootton Bassett. The briefing note will also be attached at the end in pdf form.
Update on Places Leisure centres transferring to Wiltshire Council
Briefing Note No. 21-07
Service: Communities & Neighbourhood Services Date Prepared: 28 May 2021
Further enquiries to: louise.cary@wiltshire.gov.uk
We wanted to share a bit more information with you on the council’s plans to transfer the current Places Leisure-run centres in Wiltshire into the management of Wiltshire Council.
In December 2020, the council’s cabinet made the decision to bring its leisure centres back in- house, which supports the ambition to provide an equitable level of quality leisure services across the county, with the aim of creating a more active Wiltshire.
The council currently operates 10 leisure centres across the south and east of the county, with 10 leisure centres in the north and west that are managed on behalf of the council by Places Leisure. From October 2021, all leisure centres will be managed by Wiltshire Council.
The leisure centres that will move from Places Leisure to Wiltshire Council management are:
- Bradford on Avon Swimming Pool
- Castle Place Leisure Centre, Trowbridge
- Lime Kiln Leisure Centre, Royal Wootton Bassett
- Leighton Recreation Centre, Westbury
- Melksham Blue Pool & Gym
- The Activity Zone, Malmesbury
- The Olympiad, Chippenham
- Trowbridge Sports Centre
- Warminster Sports Centre
- Westbury Swimming PoolAll Places Leisure staff will be able to transfer to become Wiltshire Council employees, and plans are ongoing to ensure a smooth transition for leisure centre users. The council has been working closely with Places Leisure to engage staff throughout the process.
The emphasis of the project work has been on delivering business critical services and systems from day one of the transfer, to ensure staff can operate the facilities effectively and customers can continue to access and enjoy the sites and their activities.
A robust governance structure has been put in place to support the transfer process, including:
- Holding an Officer Leisure Insourcing Transition Board, chaired by Sam Fox, Corporate Director, Place. Group meets every three weeks.
- Having a weekly stand up check-in group chaired by Jess Gibbons, Director Communities and Neighbourhoods
- Weekly sub-groups for the HR, leisure, ICT, procurement and communications elements of the projectWe will continue to keep you updated on any key developments.
In the meantime, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the Programme Lead, Louise Cary, at louise.cary@wiltshire.gov.uk
BriefingNote_21-07_Update on Places Leisure centres transferring to Wiltshire Council
