Improvements promised at under-fire leisure centre

Bosses of a leisure centre under-fire for its cleanliness have vowed to oversee swift improvements.

Visitors to Leisure World in Colchester have criticised the building for being dirty in recent months.

It was further condemned by Ofsted during an inspection of a children's holiday camp there in October, which said more should be done on safeguarding.

Richard Block, chief operating officer at Colchester City Council, said: "Parents trust us with their children and we take that responsibility extremely seriously."

Leisure World was told by the watchdog it must make urgent improvements to its Kid's Camp provision by 29 November.

Mr Block insisted widespread efforts were already being made to "maintain the highest standards", with new measures fully in place for its schedule of Christmas camps.

Cleanliness and safeguarding have not been the only recent issues faced by Leisure World, however.

Its yoga, aerobics and pilates instructors considered strike action over their pay in January 2024.

Seven months later, two flumes at the centre's swimming pool had to be closed for urgent repair work.

The council, which operates the venue, said comments from customers about "cleanliness and service" had also persisted.

It pledged to have higher cleaning standards and "rigorous monitoring" of them, as well as investment in building upgrades.

Martin Goss, the Liberal Democrat-led council's portfolio holder for waste, neighbourhoods and leisure, said: "The team understands the urgency and is committed to real change.

"This is a pivotal moment and I'm confident customers will soon see a major uplift in their experience."

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