A COMMUNITY leisure centre is going from strength to strength after being saved from closure five years ago, with plans in place for a £1m expansion.

In 2013, Canolfan Beaumaris was saved from closure after the local friends group negotiated a takeover of the facility, including a transfer of staff, from the Isle of Anglesey county council.

The facility was first threatened with closure in August 2009 as the authority looked to make cutbacks in non-statutory services, such as leisure, as part of savings needed due to the bleak economic outlook.

It was reprieved after a community campaign helped persuade councillors decided to keep all the island’s centres open.

But a further threat reared its head in February 2012 as the authority came under pressure to start making cuts as part of a three year process to save £10m.

Eventually, a deal was agreed in December of that year, with the new Friends of Canolfan Beaumaris taking over in April 2013 – becoming the only leisure centre on the island to be taken out of council control.

The group’s chair, Alwyn Rowlands, says that enthusiasm for the venture has remained strong, with plans in the pipeline for an expansion of the main sports hall and storage areas.

“Its been a lot of hard, committed work, but we have a wonderful team of staff and volunteers here.

“Unlike many of this type of social enterprise, while we may have lost a couple of people due to personal reasons, we’ve still got the same core of people as we had six years ago.

“We’re looking forward to the next five years in particular, with a new programme, new business venture all in the interest of making it applicable for the community’s needs.”

While the centre was initially given a £20,000 a year grant from Anglesey Council for its first three years as a community venture, Canolfan Beaumaris is now largely self sustaining.

In addition to day to day visitors, it receives its income from members, car park income, the Isle of Anglesey Charitable Trust and volunteer-run initiatives such as table top sales and bonus ball draws.

The centre also generates much of its own electricity after solar panels were installed a few years ago, with any surplus sent back to the main grid.

Mr Rowlands, who’s also a member of Beaumaris Town Council, added: “We received a lot of support, especially during the first few months, from the Wales co-operative centre and Menter Môn, which really helped us along the way.”

The success of the centre has even seen more jobs created, having grown from two to four full time staff as well as three part-time workers and several sports coaches and volunteers.

“We’re very dependant on volunteers,” added Mr Rowlands.

“Without them we couldn’t do half the things we do, especially as footfall has grown from approximately 27,000 a year in 2016 to 42,000 visitors at the last count.

“We have to overcome the fact that, unfortunately, we’re having to turn people away at the moment as we can’t fulfil all their requirements.

“So there’s only one way to cure that which is to make the place bigger, which is the next stage of the plan.”

Admitting that the major hurdle will be to secure the necessary grant funding, the plans involve expanding the main sports hall to a venue that would be capable of holding 500 people, also opening it up to hosting more concerts and events in the town.

“The plans would also involve a more expansive cafe and offices as well as more storage space for the bike rental facility,” he added.

“Yes it is a headache now we’ve outgrown our premises, but its a nice problem to have and encapsulates how much progress has been made.

“I like to think of it as an excellent example of what a community can do when it comes together in the face of adversity.”