Gyms and leisure centres could reopen from the start of July

The Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden announced in yesterday’s (Wednesday, June 17) coronavirus daily briefing that gyms and leisure centres could possibly open at the start of July “at the very earliest”.

Leisure centres across the country have been closed since Monday, March 23 when the coronavirus lockdown was introduced.

Outdoor sports where social distancing can be maintained have been permitted since May when restrictions started to ease.

With the return of Premier League football taking place last night, Oliver Dowden acknowledged that many others will be keen to get back into sports.

He said at the Downing Street briefing: “I know that countless people are itching to get back to their gyms, their leisure centres, their five-a-side leagues and all the other normal fitness activities.”

The Culture Secretary also confirmed that the Government is working closely with the sport sector to ensure reopenings are as smooth as possible.

He added: “We’re working closely with the sector to get grassroots and community sport back up and running as soon as it is safe to do so.

“The aim is the start of July at the very earliest.”

Many have took part in home workouts during the lockdown period to maintain their fitness.

The Body Coach, Joe Wicks, introduced “P.E with Joe Wicks” as a way of keeping the nation fit.

On Monday, June 15, he announced that the workouts will be reducing to three-a-week as lockdown measures continue to ease.

When Prime Minister Boris Johnson initially announced the ‘roadmap’ for easing of lockdown measures, it had been reported that gyms would not be likely to reopen until October.

The next stage of lockdown easing is expected to take place on July 4 and many hairdressers, hotels, cinemas and holiday parks are preparing to open with social distancing measures in place.

Some international travel is expected to resume in July with Ryanair, Easyjet and other airlines restarting flights to Europe.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.

Thank you.

How to subscribe to the print edition:

It’s easy to subscribe to your local newspaper. We have arranged a special 20 per cent off subscription offer for people to take advantage of. Visit www.localsubsplus.co.uk, choose the newspaper title, the type of subscription and enter your details.