Plans for the sports centre in Rye to be reopened under new management are progressing, and subject to final agreements, the facility will officially be named Rye Leisure Centre.
Daniel Lynn has been appointed as Rye Leisure Centre centre director. On appointment he said: “It’s a real privilege to be given the opportunity to lead the transition and aim to secure the future of such an important asset to the town. I’m a local resident, my family and I use the centre, so for me it’s personal.
“There’s still a lot of hard work to do, and to achieve it we need Rye to be part of it. It’s a ‘use it or lose it’ situation, we need the local community to get behind the plans – by taking out membership (or renewing your existing). Mostly, it’s important that people, clubs and businesses use the facilities. We’re going to be showcasing our plans in the coming weeks before it launches,” he added.
Rye Town Councillor Rebekah Gilbert, a trustee of the CIO said: “Our vision is that it is not ‘just a sports centre’, but by working with a range of stakeholders, voluntary, and community groups, we can extend the offering from the centre to better serve the needs of local people in terms of helping to reduce health inequalities, and lessen social isolation. This won’t happen overnight and we will need time to find our feet, learn from inevitable mistakes, and reflect. We very much want to hear from local people what they would like to see here. If it’s possible, practical, and we can find funding for it, we will try.”
All the much-valued staff currently at the sports centre are being given the opportunity to stay on at Rye Leisure Centre, with the same trusted facilities and clubs operating after the opening date.
Peter Connock, who attended the meeting, writes:
Around 50 people turned out to hear the new leisure centre team provide an update on the impending transition of the centre to the new management team. Barry Nealon and Daniel Lynn explained the plans and attendees received a very upbeat picture of the initial transition in April and future plans for development of the centre into a comprehensive health and well-being centre serving the community.
New membership prices will be held at 2024 levels. New online tools will be introduced to facilitate membership and communication and an ongoing programme to improve the facilities has already started. An early win is the installation of new solar panels, reducing energy consumption to zero on a sunny day.
Cllr Gilbert expressed enormous thanks to Rother District Council for their support during the two-year project since the closure in 2022. The team also expressed huge appreciation to the trustees, supporters, donors and sponsors that has enabled them to get to this stage a secure a long-term future for the leisure centre, and for us all.
Image Credits: Peter Connock .