A sports centre in Sudbury is set to reopen after being closed for more than three months.
Sudbury Sports Centre, situated at Ormiston Sudbury Academy, closed its doors to the public "indefinitely" in August after a contract with Abbeycroft Leisure was not renewed.
However, after members of the public voiced their frustration over the decision and the Save our Sudbury Sports Centre campaign was launched, it has been agreed that the facilities will reopen on a demand-led basis for an initial six-month period starting from November 22.
The fitness suite will not reopen to the public.
Warren Smyth, chief executive of Abbeycroft Leisure, said: “We are extremely pleased that we can continue to provide the opportunities for the local community to stay active by offering excellent services and facilities and we look forward to continuing our discussions with partners about the future of the sports centre.
“We have informed regular users of the centre and other key stakeholders about the booking availability and would urge any other groups or organisations to get in touch as soon as possible, given that we have limited hours to offer.”
Running costs for the interim period are to be supported by Ormiston Academies Trust and Babergh District Council and discussions are now continuing about the long-term future of the site beyond May 2022.
Caroline Wilson, principal of Ormiston Sudbury Academy, said: “We have always been clear in our aspirations to provide our students, and our community, with high-quality sports facilities.
"We are therefore very pleased that this offer can continue, and look forward to seeing members of the public benefiting from our facilities once again.
“We will continue to work closely with our partners throughout the re-opening, whilst continuing our active discussions around the long-term future of the site, and our ambitions to improve the facilities so they are as good as they can be, for everyone.”
John Ward, leader of Babergh District Council, said: “Ensuring our residents can live happy, healthy and active lives is a vital part of our Covid recovery, and a keystone of both our Wellbeing and Leisure, Sport and Physical Activity Strategies.
“We are, therefore, delighted to be able to support our partners to enable the re-opening of these facilities, to help meet the needs of local residents and ensure everyone can stay as fit and healthy as possible.”
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