Press release from the City of Wolverhampton Council, dated 18 August 2021
The Bob Jones Community Hub in Blakenhall will reopen its doors later this month following the completion of essential maintenance work.
A series of leaks from the roof over the last few years had caused significant damage to the building as well as to gym equipment and so the City of Wolverhampton Council took the decision to invest in the complete replacement of the roof.
That work is nearing completion and the centre will reopen to the public on Tuesday 31 August, 2021, with gym and library facilities available from this date.
Councillor Jasbir Jaspal, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for Public Health and Wellbeing, said:
"We have had to carry out extensive repairs to the roof of the Bob Jones Community Hub over the last few months and we are pleased that we will shortly be in a position to welcome back customers again. I would like to thank everyone for their patience while this work has been taking place.”
With Covid-19 infections still high in the city, measures will remain in place to keep staff and customers safe when the building reopens.
These include screens, hand sanitisers and additional cleaning. Staff will continue to wear face coverings, with visitors urged to do likewise if they can.
Councillor Jaspal added:
“These measures may be different to those people will experience in other venues; however, we believe that they will offer the appropriate level of precaution to ensure the safety of both our staff and customers.”
Gym users will need to complete a new membership form but are reassured that any gym credits that would have expired during the closure period will be reinstated in full.
Community groups are encouraged to get in touch to find out more about booking space at the community hub, and the additional measures that will be in place to keep the building Covid-secure.
Meanwhile, further improvements are planned at the centre next year, after consultation with user groups and stakeholders found support for the installation of a new skylight glazing system in 2022.
Latest figures show there were 347.1 new cases of Covid-19 per 100,000 people in Wolverhampton over the last seven days. That means 913 people tested positive for the virus in that same period – though the true number of new cases will likely be higher.