'Exciting' project must have a future

It had been planned that the "well-being centre", which would have been the first centre of its type in Leeds and one of the first in the UK, would include swimming pools, a gym and treatment and consulting rooms.

Coun Lucinda Yeadon, Leeds City Council's executive board member with responsibility for adult social care, last night reacted to the Government's decision to suspend a 50m grant for the Holt Park project.

"We're obviously extremely disappointed.

"We're pleased it's not cut at the moment, but we're disappointed that they've decided to suspend it, particularly as we were expecting to start work on it in the next two weeks."

When asked about the future of the project, she continued: "We have to make sure there is a future and we have to keep putting pressure on the Department of Health and the Government to show them actually this was a real cutting edge project; it was a real new way, an exciting way of delivering services and it's not only going to be the people of Holt Park that could be missing out, it's the city as a whole."

Last year the council confirmed it had provisionally been pledged funding of 32m from the Department of Health.

The scheme – being carried out under the private finance initiative (PFI) – would combine services provided by Leeds City Council's adult social care, youth and sports services, NHS Leeds, and the local community.

No contracts have been signed to build the centre, but contractors have been lined up.

The new centre aimed to highlight the link between health and an active lifestyle and to bring about health improvements for the community.

It was planned that the centre would replace Holt Park's existing health centre and leisure centre and be a meeting place for the community.