On Tuesday 24th January the Town Council met at 7pm in the Council Chamber at Shape Mendip to discuss the situation relating to the Leisure Centre.

The purpose of the meeting was to agree the formal position of the Council and to begin discussions around the role of the Town Council in leisure provision in Shepton Mallet. The Council resolved;

Officer report TC6.4 was received and the Vice-Chairman provided a verbal summary of the latest offer / position from Whitstone School Academy Trust, namely that:

• The astroturf will continue as before.
• Use of the centre by hockey and various football clubs will continue.
• Roller skating will continue as before.
• Trampolining will continue until at least August.
• Meeting rooms can still be used for a variety of functions.
• Badminton will still take place in the sports hall.
• Taekwondo will still take place in the sports hall.
• Classes each evening will run largely unchanged between Monday and Friday. These include circuits, LBT, burn, Pilates, yoga, suspension and booty burn.
• Two squash courts will remain until at least August. These will be booked on a pay-as-you-go basis and available Monday-Friday between 5pm and 9pm.
• The gym will remain available to residents on a pay-as-you-go basis between 5pm and 9pm Monday to Friday.
• The physiotherapy business and nail salon who sub-let the top floor of the Leisure Centre will continue to do so.

It was resolved that Shepton Mallet Town Council welcomed Whitstone School Academy Trust's statement and embraced the opportunity to set up a cross-community working group for the long term provision of leisure in Shepton Mallet. Details in discharging this decision has been delegated to the Town Clerk.

In addition to the prior resolution it was further resolved to express that the Town Council was shocked and saddened at the current situation and that the offer proposed by Whitstone School Academy Trust wasn't good enough.

View Minutes here: www.sheptonmallet-tc.gov.uk/event/extraordinary-full-town-council/