Cheshire West and Chester Council (CWCC) has reaffirmed its commitment to providing a new leisure and sports centre in Ellesmere Port.

Richard Short, the council's culture and recreation executive member, has moved to reassure a fellow councillor that the proposals had not been 'downgraded' due to financial issues. It comes as CWCC's executive approved the full council's recommended budget proposals for 2011-12, which sees £115m made available for local public amenities.

The proposals include £200,000 for site investigations at Stanney Oaks and Cromwell Road in order to provide a clear of idea of how much the scheme will cost. Ellesmere Port councillor Justin Madders said: "We don't need to spend another £200,000 on a feasibility study, because one's already been done.

"We deliberately held off taking any further action on the assurance that a replacement would be a priority for with this new council." Short responded by saying: "The £200,000 is in the budget so that we can do the detailed work to get the best possible outcome for the town.

"We have to do this work and we cannot get onto the Stanney Oaks site until the Academy moves out. If we go anywhere else, then we have to acquire the land to build on."