Southampton City Council (SCC) has announced the appointment of a preferred bidder to take over the operation of the city's leisure facilities as part of a 15-year lease agreement.

Active Nation, in partnership with DC Leisure, has been selected to manage the council-owned venues, which include Bitterne Leisure Centre, the Quays 'Eddie Read' Swimming and Diving Complex and Southampton Alpine Centre. It is hoped that the move will help to increase the number of people using SCC's leisure facilities across the city by 15 per cent over the next five years, while also saving local taxpayers more than £400,000 each year.

John Hannides, SCC's cabinet member for leisure, culture and heritage, said: "This partnership means the council will be able to draw upon the experience of our preferred partner which will enable the Council to save money and bring more investment into the city's leisure venues. "The leisure centres currently require a subsidy of £1.4m a year and this partnership will reduce those costs while improving services to all our customers. Building on the sport and recreation service's previous successes is critical and the preferred bidder will have to demonstrate annual customer satisfaction improvements."

Chamberlayne Leisure Centre, Woodmill Activities Centre, Southampton Water Activities Centre and the Outdoor Sports Centre are also among the city's leisure facilities set to be operated by Active Nation and DC Leisure as part of the deal.