THE TAXPAYER subsidy propping up city swimming pools and gyms has been slimmed down dramatically and the spiral of decline in facilities halted, according to council chiefs.

Two years ago, Oxford City Council was subsidising every single visit to its leisure centres to the tune of £2.14.

This year, that is predicted to drop to just 39p.

Council leisure bosses have hailed the success of outsourcing the centres to a not-for-profit company for the saving and say fresh investment has reversed the spiral of decline in city facilities.

Under the agreement, signed in January 2009, London-based Fusion Leisure will run all six of Oxford’s council-owned swimming pools, leisure centres and Oxford Ice Rink for the next 10 years.

Visitor numbers to city facilities rose by 5 per cent in 2009/10 to 889,243 and they exceeded 500,000 in the first six months of this year, 20 per cent above target.

Tim Sadler, director of city services at Oxford City Council, said prior to that Oxford’s sports and leisure centres had been in a Catch 22.

“There was a lack of investment so people didn’t come, so there was no income and therefore we didn’t invest in them,” he said.

But Mr Sadler said leisure centres were more economically viable under Fusion as the company benefited from tax advantages such as business rate relief and VAT exemption, saving the council £700,000.

Since the agreement, the council has ploughed £2.2m into upgrading facilities at Barton, Blackbird Leys and Ferry leisure centres and is currently investing in the ice rink.

Mr Sadler said the changes were one reason why a new £16m swimming pool in Blackbird Leys could be taken forward.

This has sparked controversy, however, as the council’s Temple Cowley Pools will close.

Mr Sadler said the new contract with Fusion had required a different mindset from council officers who no longer have complete control of the service, but he added risks to the council were minimal.

He said there was no clause in the contract that would allow Fusion to claim higher subsidy if visitor numbers dropped.

The transfer of services to Fusion Leisure was supported by Labour and Liberal Democrat councillors.

l See what the new £16million Blackbird Leys Pool will look like in Monday’s Oxford Mail.