Council chiefs in Swansea have agreed a £1m lifeline this year to subsidise leisure centres and the city's Olympic-sized swimming pool. Up to £800,000 will be provided to not-for-profit Freedom Leisure, which runs the LC and other leisure centres on behalf of the council, while up to £200,000 will be allocated to Wales National Pool Swansea, which operates the 50m indoor pool in Sketty.
Speaking at a cabinet meeting, council leader Rob Stewart said Freedom Leisure had largely been dealing with the Covid pandemic and energy price hikes since taking over the contract in 2018. "That has meant they have had a very difficult and challenging operating position," he said.
It was a situation, he said, that the council was "monitoring very, very closely". A report before cabinet said Freedom Leisure had performed well despite the challenges and that the aim over the next 12 months was to return to pre-Covid trading, but that without appropriate support the services it delivered were "at significant risk".
