Latest news
ACL kick starts Olympic legacy
Now that the summer of sport is over, Anglia Community Leisure (ACL) is launching new initiatives to drive forward the legacy of the Olympics and encourage more people to take up sport and enjoy a healthier lifestyle.
The new plans include letting people know what is available locally by developing a central resource of information about activities available at the ACL leisure centres and through local clubs and partner organisations. This Sporting Legacy page will be available on the ACL website, on Facebook and Twitter and through the local media. All clubs and sports organisations that use ACL facilities in Brandon, Mildenhall and Newmarket are being offered a free opportunity to promote their club on the website and attract new members.
Tony Bass, chief executive of ACL, says: "This information will be part of the largest effort that we have ever made to tell people what sport is going on in their local community."
ACL will be also making sport, fitness and swimming even more affordable by offering special deals during October. These will include a 20% discount on the first three months membership payments when paying by direct debit, and on annual gym and sport memberships people will pay for 10 months and get an extra three months free.
ACL will continue to work closely with the Forest School Sports Partnership in Mildenhall and Newmarket College to encourage young people to stay in sport, ensuring they can use ACL facilities to development local sports programmes. They already host over 50 local sports clubs at their facilities and work with Sport Newmarket and Saxon Sport to help bridge the gap between schools and clubs.
As well as a huge variety of sports available, there are many other ways to get fit.
Tony says: "Enjoying the exercise you do is one of the most important factors; it will keep you motivated and you will be getting fitter and more active without even knowing it!"
ACL provides over 100 group exercise classes across their facilities, from bollywood dance classes and spinning, to yoga and pilates. For those who love the great outdoors, there is an invigorating outdoor circuit class and bootcamps run around Newmarket come rain or shine. People who prefer some healthy competition, can try squash or badminton, while those who like working out alone can start their Active journey in the gym with a full fitness assessment, a one-to-one with a Fitness Instructor and a personalized Aspiration Map. For anyone who is returning to exercise, overweight or overcoming injury or illness, the best route in is through the GP Referral scheme – Active For Life.
To make it easy for people to get started, ACL facilities have no barriers nor turnstiles, so you are welcome to go and take a look; staff are on hand to help; and all leisure centres and swimming pools are fully accessible, with trained staff on hand to ease those who need a bit more attention into exercise. To keep prices low so that more people can take part, the Active Leisure Card is free to everyone and caters for those with limited income; memberships have no contracts, so you can commit monthly or annually without fear of tying up your finances; or people can choose to just 'pay and play'. If the leisure centres have nothing that appeals, then ACL will help direct you to other clubs and activities within the area.
Tony says: "Our post-Olympic priority is to encourage more and more people to participate in sport and physical activity and to adopt a healthy life-style. We are here to help introduce, develop or simply signpost people to their preferred activity. Whether it's a sport or a 'get fit' campaign, the key is easy access to affordable sport and exercise on your door step."