Anglesey Council has just spent more than £500,000 at Amlwch Leisure Centre, helping to sustain its long-term future and provide members with the latest fitness equipment.

Visitors can now enjoy modern and inclusive equipment, including new spin bikes, stair-masters and running machines, after an £80,000 upgrade to Amlwch’s fitness rooms.

However, its significant investment behind the scenes that will now help the Centre continue operating well into the future and help combat climate change in the process.

The inefficient oil-fired boilers which used to heat the swimming pool and its old ventilation system are now gone. They have now been replaced with a modern, high efficiency electrical system at a cost of around £450,000. This will minimise heat and energy loss while maximizing comfort levels in the pool.

The new electrical system provides significant reductions in energy costs and carbon emissions, resulting in an annual saving of around 230 tons of CO₂.

A 35.5kW solar PV system on the roof has also been generating 34.2 MWh of renewable electricity since being installed 12 months ago. This has resulted in savings of nearly nine tons of CO₂ - the equivalent of planting around 400 trees.

Economic Development portfolio holder, Councillor Carwyn Jones, recently visited Amlwch Leisure Centre.

Cllr Jones said, “Exercising and keeping fit is so important if we are to enjoy long term health benefits and live life to the full.

"As a Council, we are continuing to make huge strides in terms of our leisure offer across the Island. In recent years, we have provided significant investment to bring the latest fitness and cardio equipment to Holyhead, Llangefni and now Amlwch. Just as importantly, we are investing in reliable new infrastructure which will keep our popular leisure centres operational for many more years to come, benefitting local communities and helping the environment.”

"It was great to visit Amlwch, meet the leisure centre staff there and see how passionate and dedicated they are to providing the best possible service to members and visitors.”

As a non-statutory service (one which the County Council does not have to provide), Leisure has faced significant budget reductions in recent years. Introducing a new management approach, improving customer service and prudent investment of scarce resources has helped the Island's leisure centres continue as important and valued community assets.

Anglesey’s Head of Service for Regulation and Economic Development, Christian Branch, explained, “Finances in local government are of course still very tight, and given the age of our centres, we have used a sensible, and cost-effective, way to invest in leisure facilities, working with partners including Sport Wales whenever possible.”

"We’ve been realising our plans to create modern and inclusive new fitness rooms for our customers since 2018. The upgrade at Amlwch includes new Pulse fitness machines and equipment, as well as new Môn Actif branding.”

He added, “Our aim remains to provide facilities which inspire and enable residents of all ages and abilities to stay fit and healthy.”

Ends 1 October 2021