A PETITION with more than 3,000 signatures has been handed to Kirklees Council in a bid to close a sports facility.

Whitcliffe Mount Sports Centre in Cleckheaton will shut next year as part of plans to build a replacement for Whitcliffe Mount Business and Enterprise College, which shares the same site on Turnsteads Avenue.

As part of the Government's Priority School Building Programme, a new school will be built on the site of the sports centre, which is used by pupils and the public. Once that is finished, the old school building will be demolished and a new, smaller, sports centre built in its place.

Campaigners have been gathering signatures in a bid to save the sports centre, which they believe is vital for the town.

Councillor Kath Pinnock (Lib Dem, Cleckheaton) said: "The issue is that the school has to have a new building and has been prioritised by both the council and government. In order to minimise the disruption to the children, the new school building will be build next to the existing building, but that includes the site of the current sports centre.

"When it was built 40 years ago, the sports centre was for dual use, so it has two sports halls allowing both school and community use in the day time.

"The new school building will have a smaller sports centre, so it won't be available to the community in the day."

There will also be a gap between the current sports centre closing in May or June next year and the new one being opened, Cllr Pinnock added.

"When the sports centre is demolished there will be no community sports centre in the whole of the Spen Valley and Heckmondwike during the day," she said.

As the petition has 3,100 signatures, it will trigger a debate at a full council meeting. Cllr Pinnock said she expected this to be on October 7.

Councillor Shabir Pandor, cabinet member with responsibility for schools and learning, said he understood where the petitioners were coming from, but that this was a chance to get a better facility in North Kirklees.

"We are looking at interim measures," he said. "But longer term there is an opportunity for a new sports centre for North Kirklees."

The council has been developing a sports facilities strategy for the whole of Kirklees.

Facilities at Whitcliffe Mount Sports Centre include two sports halls, a gymnasium, indoor bowling rink, outdoor tennis courts, squash courts, a spin studio and fitness suite.