A phased reopening of South Kesteven's leisure centres will begin next week.

South Kesteven District Council's leisure provider, 1Life, will reopen Grantham Meres Leisure Centre and Bourne Leisure Centre from Monday (27 July).

Gyms and leisure centres are able to re-open from Saturday (25 July) and final plans are being made so they are safe for customers and staff, and to ensure they are Covid-secure.

Only fitness activities will be available and customers will have to book in advance. Time will be allocated between gym and class sessions to allow customers to enter and leave safely and for cleaning and sanitisation to take place.

Deepings Leisure Centre will reopen for fitness activities on 10 August and Stamford will reopen in September or October. The phased reopening of sites means 1Life can ensure adequate management support and for all its teams to be fully inducted into new ways of working.

1Life has reviewed and updated its health and safety procedures in line with industry guidance, as well as its operating standards to ensure high standards of social distancing and hygiene.

SKDC's Deputy Leader, Cllr Barry Dobson, said: "These centres are vital in supporting our residents to lead active lives and improve their health and wellbeing. Many people have missed being able to exercise at the centres and I hope these plans will be welcome news.

"These first steps towards a full reopening are in line with industry guidance and we have been assured that all appropriate safety measures will be in place.

"The safety of users is paramount and a phased approach to reopening the centres will ensure that the centres and any activities undertaken are safe, social distancing guidelines are adhered to and robust cleaning regimes are in place."

Among the precautions being taken are:

Gym layout changes to enable social distancing

Bookable gym sessions (50 minutes per session)

Controlled capacity

Changing rooms and lockers remain closed – customers should arrive ready

Sanitiser and hygiene stations throughout

Updated safety and directional signs

Contactless payments only

Anti Covid-19 cleaning equipment

The changing rooms and showers will not be available and customers are asked to arrive in sports kit ready for their activity. They will reopen at a later date in line with the phased approach.

Swimming pools will not reopen until September at the earliest. 1Life said guidance from Swim England was complex and they were working out how to safely manage swimming environments, their changing facilities and how those areas would be suitably cleaned.

The CEO of 1Life, Mark Braithwaite, said: "We are naturally very excited to be re-opening, but we are not doing this lightly. As the Government and public health experts ease the current restrictions, we want to ensure that members and users feel comfortable and safe using our facilities."

For more information and to book a session go to www.1life.co.uk