Watch more of our videos on Shots!
and live on Freeview channel 276

The closure date of Bo’ness Recreation Centre has been confirmed.

Falkirk Leisure and Culture confirmed today that the centre’s last day of operation will be Friday, May 3, 2024.

The news comes after councillors voted to close the leisure centre in the coming months due to concerns over its state of repair.

Falkirk Council’s strategic property review surveyors reported the building was ‘Category D (Bad)’, meaning it is “life expired and/or serious risk of imminent failure; risk of injury”, and identified urgent repair needs, including rewiring and electrical installations, new boilers, and addressing structural issues with the estimated cost for these works exceeding £4 million.

Residents in Bo'ness made their feelings clear during two protests at the recreation centre last year. Pic: Michael Gillen

The council stated it was left with “no option” but to close the facility and it would press on with plans to invest £3 million of funding into community access to sport and leisure facilities at secondary schools in the Falkirk Council area including Bo’ness Academy.

A spokesperson for Falkirk Leisure and Culture, the branch of Falkirk Council responsible for the region’s sports centres, said: “We can now confirm that the last day of operation for the centre will be Friday, May 3, 2024.

“We will be cancelling all activity booked from Saturday, May 4 onwards and customers will receive a refund for any bookings that are no longer able to go ahead.

“In the meantime, we will be operating the business as usual until Friday, May 3 and will continue to offer all previous activities unless advised otherwise.”

“Bo’ness Academy (the Academy) returns to council ownership in August 2025. Until this time, community access to the Academy will continue to be managed under the contractual arrangements between the current operators Class 98 and Falkirk Council. The existing contract does enable bookings within the school for evenings and weekends.

“We are currently reviewing Bo’ness Recreation Centre and Academy bookings to determine availability at the Academy, identify booking conflicts and assess this information against community access needs.

“We will be in touch with customers in due course, once we have a better understanding of the bookings and contract arrangements in Bo’ness Academy.”

Closure date confirmed for Bo'ness Recreation Centre