Peterborough culture and leisure services to remain under council control for at least a year

Peterborough's Key Theatre which is currently run by Vivacity

Leisure centres, libraries, heritage and arts services are transferring from Vivacity to two council-run bodies on September 17 due to the financial impact of the coronavirus.

Vivacity’s 490 employees will transfer to either City College Peterborough (142) or Peterborough Limited (348) ahead of the handover, with many remaining under furlough until either the government scheme ends in October or local services re-open.

The council said the decision to keep the services ‘in house’ will allow them to receive government support for lost income of up to 75 per cent which would not be possible if it outsourced them again, while other financial grants may also be possible in the future.

For that reason, it has now committed to running the Vivacity services for at least a year to assess their “affordability” before deciding their long-term future.

The services were initially outsourced to not-for-profit trust Vivacity from May 1, 2010.

During the first six months of the year Vivacity received nearly £1.3 million of funding from the council for the delivery of a wide-range of services, although funding has reduced in recent years with the local authority wanting the trust to become more self-sustainable at a time of government funding cuts.

When news of the Vivacity partnership ending was announced in June, city council leader Cllr John Holdich said: “We are committed to continuing and even building upon the excellent services it has provided for the city, and are excited by the opportunity to possibly even change and develop what that offer might look like for a new, post Covid world.”

Leisure centres and libraries are beginning to re-open in Peterborough, with Vivacity continuing to run them until the handover next month.

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