The future of Gosling Sports Park is looking bright following Gosling Sports Trust’s selection of not-for-profit Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL) as its preferred partner to run the Welwyn Garden City facility.
GLL is one of the UK’s largest leisure charitable social enterprise providing customer facilities under its Better brand.
GLL will work with Gosling Sports Trust to ensure this transfer secures the long term future of the Sports Park so that it remains for the benefit of the local community.
The Sports Park will retain the Gosling name alongside GLL’s Better brand to reflect its longstanding heritage within the Welwyn Hatfield community.
The popular Hertfordshire facility provides multiple opportunities for health and fitness including racquet sports, golf, football, disability sports, cycling, skiing along side a gym and spa.
London 2012 Olympic Gold medallist Laura Trott trained in the venue as do the Welwyn Wheelers, one of the largest cycling organisations in the UK.
Managing director Mark Sesnan, of GLL, said: “GLL is extremely pleased to have been selected by Gosling Sports Trust to take on the long term operation of the Sports Park in Welwyn Garden City.
“With partners from judo through to football we are looking forward to helping develop sport at grass roots level, working with wider key stakeholders and national governing bodies of sport.”
Steve Ryan, chairman of Gosling Sports Trust said: “Gosling Sports Trust is extremely pleased to partner with GLL, who will take over the day to day operation of the Sports Park.
“GLL has enormous expertise to bring to Gosling and operates a number of the country’s best known sports centres, including operating some of the Olympic venues open to the public in legacy mode.
“Members will benefit from the size and scale GLL brings to the leisure operation and staff at Gosling will access development and career opportunities going forward. This is an exciting time for Gosling, and we very much look forward to working with GLL over the coming months on this new future for the Sports Park.”
The new arrangement will see the Sports Park transferring to GLL on a long term lease with the current Gosling Sports Trust remaining as a Charitable Foundation funding and developing good causes in the local and wider community and also undertaking an ongoing representative and advisory role in regard to users and other stakeholders at the Park.
GLL will re-invest in the Sports Park over the coming years to ensure it remains the flagship facility in the area.
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