U-turn over closure of two Lancashire leisure centres - leaving council in danger of going bust

Last month the Post revealed that officers at West Lancashire Borough Council said it wasn’t financially viable to keep Park Pool in Ormskirk and Nye Bevan Leisure Centre in Skelmersdale open, even at reduced hours or capacity, or by increasing membership fees.

A report - all part of a bigger plan to make sure the Council does not serve a Section 114 notice, which in council terms is the equivalent of bankruptcy - said that if both swimming pools were kept open it would cost the council £1.056m next year and keeping just one of them open would cost approximately £500,000.

But at a budget meeting last week, councillors voted against officers recommendations, and decided to keep both locations open. It means the council has not set a balanced budget and now has to look at other ways to plug the financial gap, which is growing year on year.

Additional cuts and charges

A spokesman for West Lancashire Borough Council said: “Given the decision by Councillors to keep Nye Bevan and Park Pool leisure facilities open, the Director of Finance and Resource withdrew the budget setting report due to the increase of the budget gap from £2.11m to £3.39m in 2026/27 and a further increase to £4.11m the following year, which meant a balanced budget could not be set at that time.

WA balanced and legal budget still needs to be set before 31 March 2025, with Councillors now needing to again meet in the coming weeks to try and achieve this outcome by looking at all alternative options which will include additional cuts to council services and raising charges.