A new £190,000 gym is set to open in late September at Stokesley Leisure Centre in Hambleton district, North Yorkshire.

The 114sq m (1,228sq ft) Zest Health and Fitness Suite will be extended by 60sq m (646sq ft) to enable the addition of new fitness equipment. The project will also see the installation of a new floor, mirrors ceiling, lighting and air conditioning.

Middlesbrough-based Forden Spence has won the building contract for the project.

The new gym is part of a £500,000 scheme to renovate the leisure centre, which is owned and operated by Hambleton District Council. Over the last two years, £300,000 has been spent to refurbish the centre’s swimming pool, and £48,000 on a new Astroturf carpet for the all-weather pitch.

The scheme has been funded by capital works and investment from housing developers in the area.

A spokesperson for the leisure centre said a full review of staffing is currently underway, and that there is a possibility that new gym staff as well as a new sales team could be hired.