Isle of Wight Council’s 1Leisure centres are getting set to re-open in a COVID-secure way from tomorrow (28th July).
The council say that ensuring customers and staff remain safe is their number one priority and that they have carefully considered a range of strict new health and safety measures to ensure centres adhere to government guidance to contain the spread of coronavirus and protect the Island.
1Leisure centres at Medina, The Heights and Westridge will open their doors in a phased way with only the 3 Tone Zone gyms available to existing members initially. Sessions must be booked in advance using the online booking system to control numbers.
Safety measures will include additional cleaning, hand sanitiser stations at regular intervals, changes to the layout of the equipment and a cap on the number of users attending at any one time to ensure social distancing can be adhered to.
For now, fitness classes, swimming, racket sports and the health suite are not available for use.
The centres will comply with the government’s Test and Trace measures using the details available from members’ accounts.
Stuart Babington, facility manager, said:
“We need to test our processes to ensure the way we manage the flow of people through the site is Covid-secure.
Article continues below this advertisement “We have put in place measures to ensure our members remain safe during their visit while creating a relaxed and supportive environment to exercise in.
“We have been working hard to get the centres up and ready to be able to offer the full suite of Tone Zone equipment to our members.
“Over the coming weeks we expect to be able to reinstate more services, including classes and swimming, in line with government guidance.”
Monthly One Card membership fees will remain frozen as the whole 1Leisure offer is not available as it normally would be.
One Card members can purchase a lower priced £20 monthly subscription or a ‘pay as you go’ per session fee of £5. However, at this time, the centres cannot offer memberships to new customers.
Isle of Wight Council leader, Dave Stewart, said:
“We are looking forward to welcoming our valued members back to our leisure centres once more.
“We are confident our centres are Covid-secure and have all measures in place to maintain social distancing for everyone’s safety.”
Medina and The Heights will be open 06:00 to 21:00 Monday to Friday, and 08:00 to 17:00 on Saturday and Sunday. Westridge will be open 07:00 to 21:00 Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 15:00 Saturday and closed on Sunday.
