GYMS and leisure centres are preparing to reopen as lockdown restrictions are set to ease this week.

Weymouth Swimming Pool and Fitness Centre and Blandford Leisure Centre, both managed by sports and leisure operator Everyone Active in partnership with Dorset Council, are among those which will reopen their doors on Wednesday following a month's closure.

Dorset will move to Tier 2 level coronavirus restrictions on Wednesday but gyms and leisure centres across all tiers have been given the green light to reopen with strict safety measures in place.

Rob Slocombe, Everyone Active's area contract manager, said: "We're very much looking forward to reopening our centres and welcoming back the local community.

"After being closed for a month, this announcement from government is the news the leisure industry has been eagerly awaiting.

"It is very important to give people the opportunity to resume activity and exercise in their leisure centre, particularly during the winter months, and this will go a long way to maintaining the good health of local communities."

At the beginning of November, David Bibby, managing director of Everyone Active, wrote a letter explaining why he thought gyms should have been included in the list of essential shops and facilities which were permitted to remain open during the second national lockdown, which included supermarkets, banks, laundrettes and agricultural supply shops.

He also encouraged gym members to sign a petition to prevent gyms from closing which received more than 615,000 signatures and led to a parliamentary debate on November 23.

Mr Slocombe said: "We would like to thank the 615,000 people across the country who signed the petition we supported to keep gyms open, which triggered a parliamentary debate, and to acknowledge the impressive manner in which the leisure industry has pulled together.

"We would also like to thank Dorset Council for their support, which has proved invaluable during this challenging year.

"Ensuring our colleagues and customers remain safe is our number one priority and we have carefully considered the strict measurements to ensure we adhere to the guidance.

"We will be contacting all customers directly over the coming days regarding the centres' reopening. We look forward to welcoming everyone back and thank them for their patience."