All prospective buyers lined up to take on a closed leisure centre “intend to reopen” the facility, administrators have confirmed.

Folkestone Sports Centre shut at the end of July, resulting in 144 job losses after the charity running it said it could no longer afford to.

Administrator Opus Restructuring LLP, which was appointed in August, previously said building homes on the site could not be ruled out.

But speaking to KentOnline today, Opus has now confirmed all bidders left on the table plan to reopen the centre.

It says it is “very close” to a final decision and is waiting for a “clear recommendation” from its agents, Christie and Co, on which is the best bid to accept.

This is expected to be over the next week, it says.

Last month, Folkestone and Hythe District Council (FHDC) accepted a nomination made by the Save Folkestone Sports Centre campaign group to list the site as an asset of community value (ACV), which took effect on October 21.

Nominating something as an ACV is a way for community groups to protect assets from being sold to private owners.

If the owner decides to sell, they have to notify the local authority registering the ACV – in this case, FHDC – and it will notify local organisations.

If a community interest group or a charity puts in an expression of interest, the sale has to pause for six months, to give them time to raise the money to acquire the asset.

Folkestone and Hythe MP Tony Vaughan, who was involved in the campaign, says he is “very pleased” with FHDC’s decision and has urged the administrators to take the “quickest route forward”.

The property, which occupies a site of just over 11 acres, originally formed part of the Radnor Estate.

“I am working, and will continue to work, with any community-focussed organisation or group that wants to save Folkestone Sports Centre,” Mr Vaughan said.

“I would call on the administrators of the sports centre to take the quickest route forward: which is to accept any reasonable bid made to it by a community-interest group that could reopen the sports centre. There are no realistic alternatives.

“The land is protected by covenants which require the site to be used for leisure purposes. I do not think that the Radnor Estate would ever agree to lift those covenants to allow the site to be flattened and replaced with houses.

“Also, such a proposal would need planning permission. But every planner I have spoken to thinks this would never happen, as all the planning rules and policies make clear that leisure facilities should be protected.

“There is no alternative public pool in Folkestone, and demand for it remains very strong.”

The sports centre has been used by generations of residents and its closure was described as a “massive loss for the community”.

Lord Radnor donated the site to the Folkestone Sports Centre Trust for recreational use only, and the facility was opened by Princess Anne in 1972.

Over the years the property and business has evolved, adding on a wellness centre in 1986.

The business had been operating on both a regular user and membership basis as well as for pay-and-play visitors, offering a range of indoor and outdoor leisure facilities.

These included two swimming pools, a health and fitness suite, an indoor sports hall, three squash courts, spin and aerobics studios, a health and beauty facility and a cafe/bar.

Outside were three outdoor tennis courts, an archery area, ‘dry’ ski slope, nine-hole footgolf course and a SkyWalk high ropes course, which was one of the most recent developments, opening in spring 2021.

A petition calling on FHDC to “save” the centre, was set up shortly after the closure announcement was made. It has since gained more than 8,800 signatures.

Opus says it will provide an official comment once a final decision has been made.