Aura Leisure and Libraries Limited, in partnership with Flintshire County Council, has announced plans to redevelop and extend the fitness and leisure facilities at Mold Leisure Centre, Mold, North Wales.
Located in the grounds of Mold Alun School and Ysgol Maes Garmon School, Mold Leisure Centre is a dual-purpose site, serving pupils during school hours and the local community outside of these times.
In December 2017, the Council entered into a contract to invest £1.4 million to double the size of the current fitness facility and create a bespoke group exercise studio. The investment will be used to enhance the current leisure provision and create a sustainable physical activity offering for the future.
Works will begin this month (February 2018). On the ground floor, two largely unused squash courts will be transformed into a vibrant fitness space, adding 270sqm to the existing gym floor. In addition to the creation of a 43-station, Technogym work out area and a new, private consultation room, an Origin functional modular rig with various ancillary functional equipment, will create extensive functional training opportunities.
A mezzanine floor will be constructed above the new fitness space to house a dedicated exercise studio. This will enable a significant expansion of the Centre’s group exercise programme, helping to engage a much wider segment of the community. Improvements to the active spaces will be complemented by a refurbishment of both the male and female changing areas.
Having conducted detailed design and cost certainty assessments in August 2017, Alliance Leisure submitted a full developmet proposal in October 2017, following feasibility work undertaken by FMG Consulting. Subsequently, Alliance was appointed Leading Development Partner by Aura, a charitable, not-for-profit, employee-owned organisation responsible for managing the majority of Flintshire leisure centres and libraries.
Julia Goddard, Senior Business Development Manager at Alliance Leisure, says: “Mold Leisure Centre plays a vital role in creating safe, affordable access to leisure facilities and services. The expansion of the fitness offering, made possible by this investment, will widen appeal to new segments of the community, encouraging more people to incorporate regular physical activity into their daily lives.”
Flintshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Youth, Councillor Ian Roberts, says:
“I am delighted to see these improvements which I am sure will prove popular with local pupils and residents. It’s great to see this continued investment in the county’s sports and leisure facilities.”
Also commenting on the investment, Christine Edwards, Board Chair for Aura, says: “We are delighted with the investment into Mold Leisure Centre, in partnership with Flintshire County Council, as we continue on our journey as a new employee-owned, not-for-profit organisation.
“This development will contribute to Aura’s purpose ‘to benefit the community by improving quality of life through the provision of culture and leisure opportunities that improve mental health and physical well-being.’ We want to increase affordable ways to keep active by growing our services in Mold so they are sustainable for the future and work closely with all our community members from an early age.”
Tom Williams, Mold Leisure Centre Manager concludes: “The team at Mold Leisure Centre is immensely excited about the upcoming development. This will enable us to expand on the services we currently provide to the community and continue to cater for customers of all ages. The addition of a second first floor studio and the expansion of the fitness suite will support the delivery of new activities for both the community and the two adjoining high schools.”