Trafford Leisure Centres to temporarily close

Trafford Council and Trafford Leisure is announcing today that all its leisure centres and outdoor facilities will be temporarily closed with immediate effect, from 9pm 20th March 2020, including:

  • Altrincham Golf Course
  • Altrincham Leisure Centre
  • George H Carnall Leisure Centre
  • Old Trafford Sports Barn
  • Partington Sports Village
  • Sale Leisure Centre
  • Stretford Chester Centre
  • Stretford Talbot Centre
  • The Grammar
  • move Urmston
  • Football pitches and pavilions

This is due to the rapidly evolving COVID-19 pandemic, and to ensure it complies with the UK Government’s most recent advice.

Cllr Jane Slater, Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Health, Wellbeing and Equalities, said:

The health of residents is paramount and our number one priority. We have to limit social contact to safeguard the NHS and prevent more people from catching the virus.”

Despite these unavoidable closures Trafford Council and Trafford Leisure’s priority remains the health of its staff, community and of all its customers.

Advice from NHS England states that staying active and maintaining physical activity is an important part of remaining healthy. Trafford Leisure will be providing advice and guidance for indoor exercises on its website and social platforms and will also provide its members with complimentary access to Les Mills On Demand, so they can continue their exercise regime at home

Over the coming days and weeks Trafford Leisure and Trafford Council will explore local opportunities to provide the community with outdoor physical activities in large open spaces, allowing the community to keep well and active whilst maintaining social distancing.

In addition at the Council Executive Committee on Monday 16th March approval was granted, in principle, for a Community Asset Transfer of the George H Carnall Leisure Centre. However, due to the current coronavirus emergency and George H Carnall’s temporary closure, for the moment this transitional period will be postponed. Once this pandemic is over the process will be picked up where it left off.

Jo Cherrett, COO, Trafford Leisure says:

Our hearts and thoughts go out to the people who have been affected by this unprecedented event and we appreciate the healthcare workers, and people from our local communities, and local government who are on the front line working to contain this coronavirus.

Our doors may be closed, but we are looking at how best to ensure our most vulnerable customers are supported and looked after at this time.

COVID-19 has presented us all with extraordinary challenges that were hard to imagine a few months ago. The financial implications of closing our leisure centres are considerable, but please be assured we understand that some of our customers will need to freeze their memberships for financial reasons. While we will honour these requests, we ask that those customers who are able to retain their membership please do so.

Trafford Leisure is a community interest company, wholly owned by Trafford Council, which uses any profits and assets for community benefit. Your continued direct debits would be making an exceptionally generous and much appreciated donation to help us to maintain our staff salaries and to pay the small local suppliers we use and ensure we are able to help people in the community now and in the future.”

Trafford Leisure and Trafford Council will regularly update its community on this situation.

Posted on Friday 20th March 2020