People living and working in Richmond are set to become the latest to benefit from a county-wide revamp of our leisure services.
We launched our new sport and active wellbeing service, Active North Yorkshire, in September last year with a new focus on improving health and wellbeing through supporting more people to be physically active.
A number of leisure centres have since moved under the Active North Yorkshire banner including in Selby, Tadcaster, Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon, with an increased emphasis placed on improving the physical and mental wellbeing of communities.
Officers are now preparing to bring Richmond swimming pool and the Liberty Health Club, which are currently run by Richmondshire Leisure Trust, into our service from 1 March. The facilities will then operate as Active North Yorkshire Richmond.
Our executive member for culture, arts and housing, Cllr Simon Myers, whose responsibilities include leisure, said: “We are pleased that the facilities in Richmond will shortly become part of Active North Yorkshire.
“We want our new service to become synonymous with active wellbeing benefits for people at any level of fitness.
“By bringing all our experience and expertise into a single service, we will be able to support improved physical and mental health for communities across the county.”
The swimming pool and health club will operate as normal during the transition and memberships and opening hours will remain unchanged.
Staff will be on hand to keep customers updated and answer any questions about the move.
Officers are also working with three independent businesses which operate from the health club site.
Chairman of Richmondshire Leisure Trust, Andy White, said: “Richmond swimming pool and Liberty Health Club have provided an amazing service for many thousands of people over the past 20 years.
“As these special and vital facilities transfer to new management, we hope that they will continue to enhance the lives of all who are involved in their provision.”
Andy added: “The Board of Trustees would like to wish all staff and people using the sites well.
“The council will be taking on a dedicated team of staff whose customer care is second to none.”