A discussion on the future of the Ships and Castles leisure centre in Falmouth has been deferred to a later date after a petition of over 5,000 signatures against closure was handed in to Cornwall Council.

The announcement was made at the start of Cornwall Council's cabinet this morning where three options for the leisure centre were due to be discussed.

The three recommended options the cabinet were due to discuss today were: Closing the centre, paying a one off compensation claim of around £350,000 to operators Tempus Leisure and £100,000 a year in security and empty rates costs; keeping the centre open, without addressing the high risk of critical systems failure, at a cost of £722,000; or keeping the centre open, addressing the risk of critical systems failure, costing £1.549 million.

The leader of the council John Pollard apologised to members of the public who'd turned up to hear the discussion after Falmouth councillor Candy Atherton handed in the petition that was started last week by staff at the centre.

Before the deferment was announced Helena Collins, an employee at the centre which is leased by Tempus Leisure, said: “We’ve got a lot of work to save the centre, In that council meeting there’s one aspect they will be looking at. They will be looking at the figures and saying ‘that’s a lot of money to spend.’ “If we don’t get the public behind it and we don’t have support, they might turn a blind eye to it.

“At the moment people aren’t realising how serious it is.”

As an indicator of how important the centre is to people, she said the number of people using the facilities is the “second highest in Cornwall”, with 600 people having swimming lessons and 1,000 children using the swimming pool each week.

She said: “A really big site like that makes an impact.”

The council currently has £427,000 left in its maintenance budget, available for work at the centre, and there is a further £1.2m from a leisure budget underspend, which could see the full work completed, but that would leave no budget to address the maintenance backlog or any emergency issues that arise in any of the other leisure centres in the county.

A plan of the site drawn up recently highlights the land on which the centre sits, part of a large section of Pendennis headland owned by Cornwall Council, with a note valuing the site at £1.6 to £2.2 million for “an alternative use/ development.”

However the council also recognises that the centre has over 194,000 visitors a year, and closure would be detrimental to Falmouth’s local schools, the 600-plus children using the swim school, and other local users, and that nearby centre’s would not be able to take up the slack.

Helena said: “There’s been a mixture of emotions, people just want the building safe, because we know it’s a massive attraction in Falmouth.

“None of us want it to go, it’s like a big family here.

“There’s optimism from the staff, optimism from the public. there has to be.”

Sarah Newton, Conservative MP for Falmouth and Truro, said she was “dismayed” to learn of Cornwall Council’s plans.

She said she understands that the council needs to make savings, but they “should be mindful of their duty to promote the well being of local people and that income from tourism is an important contributor to the Cornish economy.”

However she did not rule out closure of the centre, and said: “I have written to the leader of Cornwall Council asking that the council develop a proper health and well being strategy for local people that includes access to sporting and fitness related leisure facilities. Also stressing the importance of Ships and Castles to tourism. “Working in partnership with our local universities, schools, community sports clubs and national sports bodies such as Sports England why couldn’t Cornwall Council develop a proper strategy and plan before taking such drastic action?”

Two Cornwall Councillors for Falmouth, Candy Atherton and Hanna Toms, said the council had questions to answer.

Councillor Atherton said it is clear the council plans to close Ships and Castles and use the money to prop up other centres in Cornwall.

She said: “It is too easy to say close the centre, far harder to say let’s solve the problem. Cornwall Council, take up the challenge, and turn Ships and Castles into the success it could and should be.

“This is another kick in the teeth to the people of Falmouth.”

A date has yet to be set for the deferred discussion.