An approach to delivering future sport and leisure provision in Ulverston is being finalised.
With clarity now confirmed around currently available funding, work can press ahead on a phased approach to improving facilities on the Priory Road site.
Further engagement will be undertaken with sports clubs and leisure centre users to inform the final plans, with the initial phase of the work funded by £2million from Westmorland and Furness Council, concentrating on essential improvements to existing facilities.
Councillor Vicky Hughes, Westmorland and Furness Council’s Cabinet Member for Planning and Active Wellbeing, said: "We are now in a position to be able to progress with the first phase of work, now that we have a better understanding of the available funding.
“We applied to the GSK Legacy Fund in the hope of securing funding to add to our own investment commitments.
“The GSK Task Force announced on Tuesday (26 August) that Ford Park and The Spot have been successful in securing donations from that £2 million fund, and we have received confirmation that our bid was unsuccessful.
"We are delighted that these two very worthy community projects are being supported by the GSK Legacy Fund. We all share a common goal of making Ulverston an even more fantastic place and Westmorland and Furness Council is committed to doing all it can in pursuit of that goal, working with groups, organisations, businesses and charities wherever we can for the greater good.
“The announcement from the GSK Task Force means we now have clarity over the amount of funding available for our work at Priory Road – the £2 million already allocated towards this in the council’s capital programme – as we work with leisure centre users to finalise designs and implement the first stages of improvements at the leisure centre.
“The uncertainty over the availability of external funding, how much that might be and when we may receive it, has meant we have not been in a position until now to know with any certainty what we may be able to deliver as a ‘phase one’ scheme.
“Recent engagement with leisure centre users and local sports groups and clubs has given us a good understanding of how the current Priory Road facilities are used, how they could be improved, what challenges there are for local sports groups that use these facilities and thoughts on what could be done differently to support physical activity and enabling people to lead healthier lives.
"Beyond the work we can now progress under phase one, we still have ambitions for more significant improvements at the leisure centre and we are continuing to explore alternative funding streams for later phases of works.’’
A community survey conducted between July and September last year received 837 responses, with 76 per cent of responses secured from people living in Ulverston.
Further engagement with sports clubs, sports governing bodies and the wider community is now being undertaken to help shape the final designs and it is expected that construction of the initial phases of work will commence in early 2027.
Cllr Hughes continued: “We recognise there has been some frustration at the pace of progress and it has been some time since discussions first began about improvements to Ulverston leisure facilities.
“So much has changed since the early ideas were drawn up, ideas that were originally informed by GSK’s expansion plans and the company wanting to work with the council to invest in the Priory Road site as part of relocating GSK’s own sports facilities.
“When GSK’s plans changed and the company announced it would be closing its Ulverston site, the funding picture also changed and it has changed again now that we have been unsuccessful in our bid to the legacy fund.
“In the midst of this, external factors such as material cost increases and the impact of the Covid pandemic – which has significantly altered leisure use and how people use facilities like those at Priory Road – have meant we have had to revisit previous projections and assumptions.
“Despite all this, a tremendous amount of work has gone into listening to what the community and leisure centre users want and need and ensuring we make the most of our available resources.
"Shifting from a pure leisure offer to an innovative and modern active wellbeing service for all will bring great benefits for health and wellbeing for all ages in the community.
"From the individuals keeping fit in the gym to the active and dedicated sports clubs who use the facilities month after month, year after year, these services are vital to Ulverston and the wider community and we remain committed to investment and improvements in the Priory Road site.’’