Council task group vows to commit to new leisure centre in Lichfield

It comes after the scheme hit the buffers owing to a failure to secure cash from the government’s Levelling Up Fund.

Documents prepared for a task group, which met to discuss the project’s future, said: “In light of the application to the Levelling Up Fund not having been awarded, the centre and timeframe, as envisaged, cannot be progressed.”

But some have criticised the stance, highlighting that the decision to build a new leisure centre was taken well over a year before the Levelling Up Fund was announced (in March this year).

The task group met to discuss the costs of the new facility and possible sources of funding in November 2020, four months before the Levelling Up Fund was unveiled.

Members of the task group heard that Lichfield only had very small chance of being successful in its bid for the money, as it has been classified as a ‘tier 3’ authority in the scheme.

This caused ire among some of those present, however, who stated that seven other ‘tier three’ authorities were successful in acquiring funding for their projects.

The task group was presented with two options: either put the project on hold, or scale it back and complete it when more funding is available.

The group rejected both of these suggestions, a move which was praised by Councillor Dave Robertson.

He said: “In October 2019 the cabinet bowed to the weight of public opinion and reversed their decision to close Friary Grange.

“As part of this decision, they promised our city a new facility to replace Friary Grange and it’s quite right that councillors hold them to their word.

“It was a blow when the government chose not to award any funding from the Levelling Up Fund, but this fund didn’t exist when the decision was made, or when the outline facility mix was discussed.

“The people of Lichfield deserve a proper leisure centre, not excuses about whether a particular fund chose to support us or not. If the money isn’t coming from that fund, the council needs to find it elsewhere.”

The project has recently changed leadership, as Councillor Liz Little resigned her role as cabinet member for major projects.

The new cabinet member with responsibility for the leisure centre project, Councillor Iain Eadie said the council is committed to finding a way to ensure the new leisure facility is built.

He said that they would have to weigh up a number of options for securing the necessary funding, including borrowing a larger sum of money to ensure the project goes ahead.

Councillor Eadie said: “The council is already committed to borrowing £5m to go towards the cost of the new leisure centre, and therefore it would be a fresh decision of council to consider borrowing a larger sum.”

He added: “We would need to be informed by the council’s overall financial position in terms of being able to do so.”