Copyright birminghammail
Charges at Worcester leisure facilities are set to rise by an average of 5.9 per cent. Worcester City Council says rising energy and staffing costs are outstripping increases in income. Freedom Leisure, which operates leisure facilities on the council's behalf, is planning to push up prices for most activities from January 1. READ MORE: Birmingham bar bringing in under-18s ban after 'recent incidents' Among the steepest increases will see unlimited swimming for those aged over 75 jump from £20 to £26. Freedom, a not-for-profit leisure trust, will maintain its offer of 15 hours of complimentary tennis each week. A further 52 hours of free tennis across 15 days during the Wimbledon period will be funded by the council. Pay-and-play tennis at Cripplegate and Gheluvelt parks is set to rise by four per cent. Casual swimming fees are set to climb from £7 to £7.30 for adults, and from £3.70 to £3.90 for children. Artificial grass pitch hire at Perdiswell Leisure Centre is set to increase by 10 per cent, though no rises are planned for pitches at St John's or Nunnery Wood. The council said Freedom has managed to cut energy usage by £55,023 at Perdiswell Leisure Centre, £678 at St Johns Sports Centre and £7,407 at Nunnery Wood Sports Complex. However, prices must increase to enable Freedom to fulfil its "contractual obligations as much as possible in the current economic climate". Rob Tyler, area manager at Freedom Leisure, revealed that income exceeded targets by approximately half a million pounds over the past year, yet expenditure was "£600,000 over what we thought it would be". Council financial backing enabled the leisure centres to achieve a break-even position, he informed the council's communities committee. Solar panels fitted at Perdiswell have already begun generating energy savings, he added. Committee chair Jabba Riaz commented: "It's really good we still have our leisure centres open." However, he voiced concerns that increasing football pitch costs could render access to the sport "cost prohibitive" at grassroots level. The price increases require approval from full council, which convenes on 25 November, before they can take effect.
