More than 17,000 pupils were offered free swim and gym access from November 2022 to March 2023 as a part of East Dunbartonshire Council’s £2.1 million cost of living support package.
The £500,000 allocated allowed primary school pupils to access swimming at no cost and secondary pupils (12-18 year olds) to access the gym facilities for free.
This led to 31,192 visits by children and young people to the leisure centres from November 2022 to March 2023.
Around 4,000 children joined the gyms between November and March. Young people previously in possession of a membership also benefitted from five months free access.
This cost of living measure aimed to promote leisure activities to help residents maintain physical and mental health during a time when finances were challenging.
Alongside the free swim and gym, the Council’s cost of living support package also included an additional Winter Support Payment for eligible children.
Farmfoods vouchers were supplied to eligible local people and council tenants, whilst people affected by homelessness were supplied with energy vouchers.
During the 2022 Budget Survey entitled ‘Have YOUR Say’, responses showed that more than 80% of respondents agreed with the Council’s cost of living support measures.
Ann Davie, Depute Chief Executive East Dunbartonshire Council, said, “The free swim and gym scheme has been a huge success. It has allowed thousands of school pupils in East Dunbartonshire to enjoy the swimming and gym facilities we have to offer at our Leisure Centres.
“Exercise is vital for not only physical health but mental health too and the free swim and gym has allowed young people explore new hobbies during a challenging time for many families.
“We hope this initiative has provided some ease during the cost of living crisis.
“We are happy to have been able to provide this opportunity to our local primary and secondary pupils, allowing thousands of them to enjoy and experience the leisure facilities we have in East Dunbartonshire.”
With the cost of living crisis ongoing, many residents continued to struggle and be concerned about the increasing costs. This led to a further £1.5 million being allocated to the cost of living support package for the 2023/24 budget.
As part of this new cost of living support package an additional £300,000 will be allocated to East Dunbartonshire Leisure and Culture Trust, allowing the free swim and gym to run again from April 2023 to March 2024.
To find out more about how the cost of living budget will be spent visit the Cost of Living page.