Ceremonial opening held at The Reef following phenomenal opening months

Date published: 1st April 2022

North Norfolk District Council formally opened The Reef Leisure Centre on Thursday 31 March, following fantastic opening months for the new facility

Leader of the Council, Cllr. Tim Adams cut the ribbon and formally opened The Reef, marking the completion of a flagship project for NNDC. 

The opening was marked with a speech from Sheringham Mayor, Cllr. Virginia Gay & Cllr. Tim Adams, and included a tour for guests.

The Reef, run by award-winning operator Everyone Active, first opened doors to the public on Tuesday 30 November to queues ready to use the pool, gym, and studio classes.

Cllr. Virginia Gay, Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Wellbeing & Culture said:

“This is a proud day for the Council – we were very pleased to open the doors to The Reef in November, but today is our day to truly reflect on this wonderful facility for North Norfolk.

In these short months, The Reef has already been very well used and loved, and all the hard work that has gone into planning an advanced leisure offering in Sheringham has paid off.”

Since the opening, the use of the leisure centre has exceeded expectation, with over 17,000 visits in February alone – 4000 more than Splash achieved in February 2020, pre-COVID.

Membership numbers recently reached over 1300, a target set for the end of the third year of opening, and broken in just three months.

Karl Read, Leisure and Localities Manager said:

“The reception to The Reef has been fantastic – we were expecting the facility to be popular, but the numbers are incredible and really reflect just how much it has to offer.

It’s a proud moment for us, to have delivered such a facility.”

The Community Rooms were dedicated to long-time Sheringham councillor and supporter of a new leisure centre, Cllr. Brian Hannah.

The Reef represents a £12 million pound investment into leisure in North Norfolk and features an advanced leisure and fitness offering.

Stuart Jardine, Everyone Active’s Contract Manager said:

“We are so proud to serve the local community at The Reef and to play our part in getting people of all ages, interests and abilities active.

“We have been delighted by the huge number of people making use of the wide range of fantastic activities we have here.

“I’m sure the centre will continue to go from strength to strength and we look forward to welcoming many more customers over the coming months.”

Find out more about The Reef