North East Lincolnshire Council plans to invest £15.1m on improved leisure provision in the area after a survey revealed that only 45 per cent of the adult community undertake physical activity.

The council’s Leisure Review showed that the region suffers from low levels of community participation in regular sport and physical activity compared with national statistics and that the existing public facilities in the area are outdated and require investment to bring them up to standard.

The gloomy findings have kicked the council into proposing a leisure refurbishment project in collaboration with its current Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme.

Deputy director of community and support services, Sue Wells, told Grimsby Telegraph: “The main aim of the review and its recommendations is to ensure we have facilities that are fit for purpose.

“By linking the outcomes of the review with the BSF programme, we have an ideal opportunity to develop facilities that are fully integrated and to develop the potential for greater community access to sports and leisure facilities within schools, at times when they are not needed for core school activity.

“This means buildings and equipment are fully utilised 52 weeks a year and we all have a wider choice of venues to access. We are also keen to attract all age ranges and to ensure that our young people continue to be active outside and after school.”