A local leisure centre has begun work on a £1m refurbishment to provide state-of-the-art facilities for local people.

Westminster Lodge Leisure Centre, run by Everyone Active in partnership with St Albans City and District Council, will receive a full gym refurbishment, improvements to the café and soft play and will have a brand new, high-end group cycling studio installed.

A phased approach will be taken to the gym’s overhaul and following a temporary gym closure between 31 Oct to 2 Nov, it will remain open to customers until works are complete after Christmas.

The group cycle sessions are to be relocated to an alternative studio from Monday 31 October through to Christmas, whilst a brand-new, high-end group cycling studio is created.

The current soft play will close on Monday 31 October. It will be relocated and given a fresh look with a brand-new Roman-themed soft play area, which will open on Monday 14 November.

The café will close on Sunday 20 November, with a brand-new café launching on Monday 19 December.

Steve Cox, contract manager at Everyone Active, said: “This is a really exciting development at Westminster Lodge. With Everyone Active adding a further seven centres to our portfolio locally, it’s a brilliant opportunity to refresh and give the local community a new and improved facility.

“We would like to take this moment to thank members for their patience during this transition period and would advise them to look for ongoing updates on our website, on our social media channels or by asking at reception.”

Councillor Helen Campbell, Lead Councillor for Sport and Leisure Contracts for St Albans City and District Council, said: “We are pleased that Everyone Active has started this major refurbishment of one of our flagship leisure centres. The improvements are substantial and are part of the recently-renewed management contract that we have with them.”