Official Opening of £20m Move Altrincham: Transforming Community Health

The new £20m modern move Altrincham has been officially opened as part of a special celebration event attended by the Mayor of Trafford, Cllr Jane Brophy, and Council Leader, Cllr Tom Ross, alongside fellow elected members, staff and other special guests.

Since opening in August 2025, move Altrincham has seen a surge in community engagement, with new gym memberships exceeding end of year targets by 77%.

The centre’s Learn to Swim programme now supports more than 2,000 children, including 400 new participants who joined following the reopening. Additionally, almost 300 residents have been referred to the facility by their GPs to manage health conditions and improve their overall wellbeing.

The Cove Spa, a premier 500 square metre facility and one of the UK’s few public-sector spa offerings, has welcomed more than 665 new customers since its August debut.

move Altrincham benefits from two swimming pools – a 25m pool and a 20m pool – both equipped with accessible pool pods. There is a combined lobby area with pool viewing and a café delivered by Altrincham favourite, MOST Bakery, a wet village changing area and an inclusive Changing Places toilet.

It also boasts an enlarged fitness suite, a wellness assessment room, two flexible studio spaces, an indoor cycle studio, a four-court sports hall, a gymnastics hub, fitness changing and dry change areas, and staff rooms and offices.

The new mix of facilities has been developed with support from Sport England, including £1.6 million investment, to deliver long-term sustainable leisure provision that gives the best health and wellbeing outcomes for local residents.

Lisa Dodd-Mayne, Executive Director, Partnerships and Place, Sport England, said: “We’re investing in places across England to support more people to be active. move Altrincham has been transformed and in turn, the lives of communities across Altrincham and the surrounding areas will be transformed through improved access to sport and leisure opportunities. Our commitment goes beyond Altrincham; we are

partnering with organisations and local communities across Greater Manchester to support people to lead healthier and happier lives.”

Jo Cherrett is the CEO of Trafford Leisure, a community interest company wholly owned by Trafford Council, which manages leisure in Trafford on behalf of the council, using any profits and assets for community benefit. She says: “It has been wonderful to officially open and celebrate the success of move Altrincham today. It’s a wonderful centre of wellbeing, with facilities and activities for everyone, no matter who you are. I’m thrilled with the refurbishment and the difference it is already making to our community. So, if you haven’t done so already, do come and try it out.”

The extensive refurbishment supports Trafford Council’s strategy to get more people moving more often, helping improve health and wellbeing, and is part of its Physical Activity Strategy, ‘Trafford Moving’. It also supports the Council’s corporate priority to reduce health inequalities across the borough.

The refurbishment of move Altrincham follows the successful redevelopment of move Urmston in March 2020 and will see further refurbishments carried out in a phased arrangement in Trafford at Partington, Stretford and Sale leisure centres.

Cllr Eve Parker, Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Leisure, Arts, Culture and Heritage said: “We’re delighted to mark the official opening of move Altrincham. This great facility has been extremely well received by local people, with many newcomers being tempted in to try different ways to be active – in line with our Council priority to help people to lead healthy and independent lives.

“move Altrincham is part of a much wider programme of improvements to our sports and leisure facilities that have included the successful refurbishment of move Urmston, which will soon be warmed by green energy from a data centre next door.

“Our ambitious transformation of Partington Sports Village is now under way, and we have just this week officially opened new footballing and BMX facilities at Cross Lane Park.

“We plan to bring padel courts to Altrincham Golf Club later this year, and we’re also working on plans to redevelop Sale and Stretford leisure centres. So there are plenty more changes and improvements on the way to ensure our residents can access the best possible facilities.”

Image: Trafford Leisure