Council to pay for soft play area replacement
NORTHUMBERLAND County Council has agreed to fund the £60,000 cost of replacing a soft play area at one of its leisure centres.
The current soft play structure at Prudhoe Waterworld was first installed over a decade ago, but has been closed since September.
The council deemed that ongoing repairs to ensure it remained safe were no longer economically viable – or even possible.
However, a report presented to the council’s cabinet on Tuesday stated that the soft play remained popular due to the closure of other facilities in the local area.
The agreement comes ahead of a wider refurbishment of the leisure centre with more than £1.5m pledged by the county council.
Speaking at Tuesday’s meeting, cabinet member with responsibility for leisure Coun Jeff Watson said: “As everyone knows we have a first-class leisure offer throughout Northumberland.
“We have some new ones but we also have some older ones. Prudhoe needed to have the play area upgraded and this is extra money to make sure people in Prudhoe have a first-class offer there as well.”
New leisure centres have been built in Berwick, Morpeth and Ponteland in recent years, while Waterworld dates back to 1990.
Of all the county’s leisure centres, Prudhoe has the lowest market share at just 40%. It is hoped that the upgrades will convince more locals to use the facilities.
Coun Gordon Stewart, cabinet member and ward councillor for Prudhoe South, said: “I’m absolutely delighted we have received this funding. It is a fine building that is well situated and loved by locals and visitors. We also support the bowls club next to the leisure centre so it would be difficult to expand. Unlike other local authorities, we are investing in our leisure centres.”