A major leisure centre chain in Cumbria has said the cost of living crisis has forced it to reduce opening hours.
Better Leisure, which runs over 20 centres across Cumbria, has seen its energy costs more than triple since 2019.
The charitable social enterprise said in an email that it was introducing a temporary winter programme across 200 of its centres in an effort to combat the rising costs.
The changes will begin in December and run until Easter and will differ for each centre, with some opening an hour late or closing one hour early. Better said they could not confirm which centres in Cumbria would be affected, but advised customers to check its website and app for any changes.
The shortened opening hours aim to allow centres to turn off lights as well as plant equipment at the time of maximum energy use, when it is cold and dark and when it is least busy.
Parent company GLL said its energy costs were now more than three times what they were before the pandemic. They added heating a swimming pool now costs over £300,000, up from under £100,000.
A spokesman for GLL said: “These changes come off the back of unprecedented rises in our energy costs. Some centres will open an hour later or close an hour earlier on certain days. Any changes can be found on our website and app.”
“The winter programme is designed to keep valuable leisure facilities open and viable – and customer disruption to a minimum. Swimming lessons and school swimming are unaffected. Where clubs are affected we are contacting them individually. We apologise for any inconvenience to customers.”
