Shropshire Star

Bridgnorth Leisure Centre prepares for phased reopening

Bridgnorth's only leisure centre is preparing for a phased reopening.

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Bridgnorth Leisure Centre

Halo Leisure Centre, owned by the Endowed School, will start to welcome the public from July 25.

The final touches are being made to make sure it is safe for staff and members to return.

Halo's preparations are in line with thousands of gyms and leisure centres across the UK preparing to reopen as part of the Fit Together campaign from the fitness industry trade body, UKactive. The campaign is based on the government’s guidelines for reopening.

Not all centres or activities will be available straight away, and initially, only the gym and group exercises will be available.

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Bosses are working towards opening the swimming pool on Saturday, August 22, and lessons will restart at a later date. Halo will be in contact with parents with children on the learn to swim programme before lessons begin.

There will be signs guiding customers on how to act safely and responsibly, similar to those used in supermarkets, and equipment may be marked as ‘out of use’ or spaced further apart to comply with social distancing rules. Social distancing means members must prebook all activities online or through the Halo Leisure App.

Hygiene

Changing rooms and showers will also be temporarily unavailable, meaning that members are asked to arrive on site wearing the appropriate clothing to be active.

Along with social distancing restrictions, there will be an increase in the cleaning of equipment and sanitisation stations, to ensure the highest possible standards of hygiene and cleanliness.

The temporary measures will be adapted as and when government advice changes throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

Scott Rolfe, Halo CEO, said: “The government has given us a clean bill of health. We want to reassure members our facilities will be clean, safe and ready to welcome them back soon but if they have concerns then staff will be able to explain all the changes when they return. Everything you need to know about returning to Halo safely and surely can be found on the halo website.

“Fitness and leisure facilities are part of the social fabric of our society, and it’s clear our sector has a vital role to play in our resilience and recovery from Covid-19.

“We know that people have missed being active together in our facilities, and customer and staff safety will be our number one priority when we reopen.”

For more information, contact 01432842075 or info@haloleisure.org.uk