FEES and charges for using the city’s leisure centres are set to rise to help cover the cost of rising energy bills.

Freedom Leisure, which runs Perdiswell Leisure Centre, Nunnery Wood Sports Complex and St John’s Sport Centre on behalf of Worcester City Council, is pushing to increase prices by around an average of nine per cent to boost funds.

The leisure centre provider is facing a huge £585,000 gap in its finances in the next 12 months due to the spiralling cost of gas and electricity, and has put forward several cost-cutting measures to try and bridge the gap.

READ MORE: Worcester council leader Chris Mitchell slams parking fees decision

Freedom Leisure’s plan to up prices would be expected to bring in an extra £230,000 next year.

Worcester City Council’s communities committee met in the Guildhall on Wednesday (January 25) to discuss the measures including the proposed increase in fees and charges.

The communities committee supported handing over £550,000 for energy-efficiency work as well as handing over £315,000 to help Freedom Leisure pay its energy bills in the next 12 months but a final decision will be made when councillors meet at the end of February to set next year’s budget.

READ MORE: Scala Theatre budget worries eased as government green lights cash

However, councillors did back a plan to slash opening times at Nunnery Wood Sports Complex as well as close Perdiswell Leisure Centre an hour earlier as a way of cutting costs.

While councillors supported the plan to raise fees and charges, there were concerns about some of the increases including doubling the cost of a yearly swimming pass for the over-75s to £20.

There were also concerns about charging schools an extra 12 per cent, and swimming clubs and private hire an extra seven per cent on average, to use the pool.

READ MORE: Opening times at Worcester's leisure centres to be cut to save money

The committee recommended freezing both charges but it will still have to be given the green light by another two committees and full council before it is set in stone.

Cllr Owen Cleary said it was “bonkers” to propose doubling the cost of annual swimming passes for the over 75s – given that the committee had earlier been told the council that it was one of the only groups that had not returned to the pools and leisure centres after the Covid pandemic – and it was an “absolutely pointless” move.