THE treadmills are in place and the astro turf has been laid – St John’s Sports Centre is almost ready to open.

The brand new, state-of-the-art facility will be open for business for the first time on Monday.

Yesterday, your Worcester News was given a sneak preview.

The spacious centre in Malvern Road, St John’s, Worcester, boasts two fitness suites, an air-conditioned sprung-floored dance studio, multi-use activity room and main sports hall with under floor heating spread over two floors.

There are floodlit five-a-side football pitches and an adjoining car park. In the first-floor gym the fitness machines have flat-screen televisions attached allowing users to watch what they want while exercising and in the dance studio there is an in-built music system.

Describing the facility as fantastic and first-rate, Worcester City Council’s recreation business manager Alan New encouraged people to see for themselves when the doors open for a special event this weekend. “The open weekend is all about celebrating the completion of the new St John’s Sports Centre,” said Mr New.

“We are proud of our achievements and really believe that the facilities it offers are first-rate. We hope to encourage as many people as possible to come along and have a look for themselves.”

From 10am to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday, there will be competitions, giveaways, a bouncy castle, guided tours and a chance to try out the latest equipment, including multi-player dance mats and Sportwall panels, which combine computer game technology with cardio-vascular workout.

“We are justifiably proud of what has been achieved for the residents of Worcester; some of the systems we have introduced are the very best in their field,” said Mr New.

“Membership figures have already increased and we look forward to providing a fabulous value-for-money service in an outstanding environment.”

The sports centre project is a joint venture between Worcester City Council, Worcestershire County Council and Christopher Whitehead Language College.

It is funded by Sainsbury’s, who have received planning permission to build a store in St John’s.