A PLEDGE to build a £14 million leisure centre in the Spen Valley has been cautiously welcomed by local councillors.

The multi-million pound sports complex would be built on the site of the ageing Spenborough Pool and Fitness Complex in Liversedge.

It would also replace the the facilities which were lost when Whitcliffe Mount Sports Centre was closed and subsequently demolished two years ago.

The ruling Labour group at Kirklees Council has put forward the proposals in its capital plan, which would see £13.25m from the council and a further £750,000 from Kirklees Active Leisure – a charitable trust that runs sports centres in Kirklees – invested in the new facility.

The money is earmarked to be spread over four years, with the majority of the cash being spent between 2019 and 2021.

But local Liberal Democrat councillor John Lawson said his group had concerns that the amount set aside was not enough to build a new pool as well as sports halls and fitness facilities.

Cllr Lawson said he and fellow ward councillors had campaigned in 2013 to save Spen Pool as it was coming to the end of its life and needed replacing.

Thousands signed a petition and succeeded in getting some money earmarked in the next budget, but around £8m was needed for the pool alone.

More recently they also called for a replacement for Whitcliffe Mount Sports Centre when it was lost to enable a replacement school to be built on the site.

He told the Telegraph & Argus: “We cautiously welcome the announcement, but have concerns that it’s not enough money.

“The leisure centre in Huddersfield cost £36m, so we know we are not going to get something that is all-singing and all-dancing, like the Huddersfield project.

“A pool itself will be at least £8m and I am not convinced that the remaining money is enough to replace what we lost when Whitcliffe Mount sports centre was closed down as well.”

He also feared the scheme could easily lose out due to further budget pressures on the authority, which has had to slash its reliance on Government funding year-on-year.

Councillor Shabir Pandor, deputy leader of Kirklees Council, who announced the budget proposals – including a rise of six per cent in council tax – said: “We propose investing in our town and village centres, in our voluntary and community sector, and in a new leisure centre for north Kirklees.

“This is vital if we are to remain an attractive place to live, work and for businesses to invest.

“The Labour group has made its priorities clear – to protect the vulnerable, to give young people the best start in life and to ensure our local environment is clean and green, and I will propose the rise in council tax to help us meet those priorities.”

The budget proposals will go before a special meeting of the council on Wednesday, February 14.