Trowbridge leisure project continues to make progress as council considers its options

Wiltshire Council has provided a further update on its plans to provide improved leisure provision in Trowbridge, with the current focus on what type of services would benefit the local area and where they could be located.

The update on the project was provided at last night's (19 January) Trowbridge Area Board.

In recent months the council and its consultants have been carrying out a thorough review of what the current physical activity opportunities are in Trowbridge, to help identify which additional services and facilities might help to increase participation locally. This work is ongoing, and at the conclusion of this research and analysis period, the council will have a preferred list of services it believes will most benefit the local community, while also being sustainable and financially viable for the council to operate for the long-term.

The council and its consultants also recently conducted a survey with school-aged children to gather their views on what type of services they would like to see. The council received 544 responses in all, and this is in addition to the 962 it received as part of its wider-engagement exercise last summer.

All of this work and preparation is directly feeding into the process of selecting a suitable site to house these potential services. The council is working with architectural consultants and there are a number of considerations being factored in before confirming a preferred site. This includes the practicality and size of the location, what the suitability and make-up of the catchment area is, and if there are any potential planning constraints and issues associated with it. This work will continue and any final decision on location and services will go through the council's formal decision making process. However, residents and stakeholders will be kept up-to-date as this process continues.

Cllr Ian Blair-Pilling, Wiltshire Council Cabinet Member for Leisure, said: Our teams have been working hard behind the scenes to ensure that when we are in a position to confirm the final facilities and location, we'll be as confident as we can be that they will benefit our communities and meet local need. This will be a significant investment for us as a council so it's vital the foundations of this project are rock solid so what we provide will be in place for many years.

We once again thank people for supporting us in this information-gathering stage - the feedback is vital as we look to enhance the services in the area so that we can support people to stay active and ensure Wiltshire has well-connected communities.

We'll ensure to keep everyone updated as soon as we're in a position to confirm more details.