05/03/2026
๐จ๐ฝ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐
Dear centre users and members of the community,
Firstly, the whole YMCA team would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude for the outpouring of support and goodwill which we have received since our announcement that we are stepping away from management of the Sports Centre facility, which we lease from Torpoint Community College. Having supported the Torpoint community for nearly 20 years, weโve been deeply touched by your kind comments of support.
As announced, a meeting with the Torpoint Community College was held earlier this week to discuss the termination of the lease and the end of YMCA operations on 31st March 2026 predominantly due to the centreโs unsustainable financial model.
Whilst the lease with TCC formally terminates on 31st August 2026, it is YMCAโs intention and hope that an agreement can be reached so that the centre is handed back to the school as swiftly as possible after our operations end on 31st March 2026. We have no intention to remain tenants longer than necessary, and a further meeting with the school is planned next week to discuss the return of the building in a way that is satisfactory to Torpoint Community College.
As part of our core mission to support local communities, we are committed to ensuring a fair and ethical transition. To this end, we are offering to leave in-situ or donate all YMCA-owned equipment back to the Torpoint community at the schoolโs bequest. This gesture provides the school and the community with the potential to move forward free from the constraints of the existing YMCA licence, subject to next weekโs meeting. Our partnership will be able to share more on this subject after next week's meeting.
As we mentioned in our previous statement, it is with much sadness that we are in the unfortunate position of stepping away from the management of the facility, especially after many years of supporting the Torpoint community. Regretfully, the centreโs unsustainable financial model (people-focused), which is only forecast to worsen, places a burden on our wider local charitable work, which would be unfair for YMCA as a charity to continue absorbing longer than necessary.
We would also like to reiterate that our decision was not taken quickly or lightly. It was only taken after a significant period of time exploring alternative solutions to sustain the facility, including funding opportunities and engagement with other stakeholders. Additionally, as YMCA was purely the leaseholder responsible for the management of the facility, our preferred option for capital development at the site was severely limited, as the charity itself would have been at risk, particularly with regards to the lease being terminated at any point by Torpoint School, with only a 6 monthsโ notice period required. It must be noted, however, that the school were receptive to reviewing and updating the lease to encourage capital investment, which was appreciated.
We sincerely hope an alternative and sustainable model can be found by Torpoint Community College. One thing YMCA can assure the community, we will do our utmost to support the transition and any future arrangement as best as we can, hopefully without further financial detriment, such as the recently invested ยฃ70,000 into the new flooring at the centre, following last year's flood and insurance valuation gap.
Once again, our sincere thanks to the Torpoint community, the school and all our centre users for their support.
