These are the Calderdale leisure centres, swimming pools and museums closing due to coronavirus

The Council is closing a large number of its public leisure and culture venues for at least 12 weeks, in response to the strengthened national advice on limiting social contact to reduce the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19).

From 5pm on Friday March 20 2020, all Council-run sports and leisure centres and museums, the Victoria Theatre and the Shay Stadium will close for 12 weeks initially, but this will be reviewed as the situation develops.

The Council’s libraries service will still be running, but some smaller libraries will be closed to support social distancing advice and to allow the Council to deploy staff effectively.

Councillor Tim Swift, Leader of Calderdale Council, said: “Protecting the health and wellbeing of our communities and staff is our highest priority. These are unprecedented times and we need to ensure both community resilience and reduced risk to people.

“We continue to rigorously follow national advice in our response to COVID-19. Due to the further social distancing measures announced by Government on Monday 16 March, including avoiding public buildings such as theatres and restaurants, we have decided to close our key public venues until further notice to help reduce the spread of the virus.

“This is one of numerous actions we are taking as part of our ongoing response. At our Cabinet meeting on Monday 16 March we announced a 10-point plan detailing how the Council will respond to the risks related to COVID-19.

“I would like to thank our communities for their patience, kindness and resilience, and our staff who are working tirelessly.

“We’re reviewing all of our services to make sure we do the best for Calderdale. As the situation develops we will continue to adapt and we will keep people updated.”

The buildings which will close from 5pm on Friday 20 March are:

All Council-run sports and leisure centres – They include Brighouse Swimming Pool and Fitness Centre, Halifax Swimming Pool, North Bridge Leisure Centre in Halifax, Sowerby Bridge Swimming Pool and Fitness Centre, Todmorden Sports Centre, Queens Road Gym and Mixenden Activity Centre.

No public activities will be taking place in any of these buildings, including school swimming lessons.

All Direct Debit payments for memberships will be suspended for the closure period. For members who have paid cash in advance, their membership will be extended by the length of the closure period.

All Council-run museums – They include Shibden Hall and Bankfield Museum in Halifax, Heptonstall Museum and Smith Art Gallery in Brighouse.

Following Government advice, the planned Anne Lister birthday celebration events will no longer be going ahead, to help slow the spread of the virus.

It is hoped that events will be rescheduled later in the year to commemorate Anne’s contribution to society.

The Victoria Theatre, Halifax

The Shay Stadium, Halifax – all FC Halifax Town football matches and Halifax Rugby League Club games have already been cancelled, but as the venue is also used for other functions and meetings, it will also be closing to the public for these purposes.

To protect the health and safety of customers and staff, the Register Office in Halifax is limiting the number of people present at registration appointments to a maximum of two.

If you, or someone you live with, have any symptoms of COVID-19 / are staying at home, please do not attend your appointment and contact the Register Office for further advice