Gloucester City HC, whose women’s 1s play in Division One North, could be without a home pitches for up to a year after a local leisure facility went into administration.
Aspire Trust, which owns the Oxstalls Sports Park venue where the club play home matches, closed its doors with immediate effect last week after stopping its contract with Gloucester City council across two facilities.
Gloucester were forced to postpone its home matches at the weekend to the slip week in October. A petition was launched at the weekend to reopen.
“It’s hard knowing it’s happening to your own Club, but to think about all the other people in and around Gloucester that use these facilities is heartbreaking!” a post stated on Facebook.
“We will keep [members] informed on how the situation develops and what it means for the club,” a statement added.
It is reported that 150 people will lose their jobs at the city’s two centres owned by Aspire Trust.
Like many centres across the UK, facilities have felt the sharp impact of the pandemic and rising utility costs.
A spokesperson for Gloucester City Council said: “We recognise it has been extremely difficult for leisure centres across the country and we understand the pressures that the trust has faced.
“We have worked with Aspire to try to support them with their financial challenges and reduce costs as well as committing to ongoing financial support. We are disappointed that Aspire did not feel it was able to continue beyond September and understand that this was a difficult decision.”
