The Pelican Centre

When Wigan Council announced it could no longer fund the leisure centre and pool in Tyldesley, local people took matters into their own hands. Together, they formed a charity to take over the running of the facility – and the Pelican Centre is the result.

This community-owned fitness hub prides itself on being affordable and accessible. It offers more than 60 classes a week, led by qualified instructors and clearly graded across five levels on the Peli-ometre scale, from very light to intense (if you’ve ever found yourself embarrassingly out of your depth in a gym class, you’ll know how reassuring this is). Ease yourself in with Gentle Gym or Tai Chi, then work your way up to Intense HIIT or Bootcamp sessions.

There are also classes in the pool – Sunday morning Aqua Dance is a weekly highlight – plus swimming lessons for kids.

The Pelican Centre is functional rather than fancy – it’s a former council leisure centre, after all. But it’s clean, friendly, well run, and has everything you need for a varied gym life. It’s also one of the cheaper options in the area, with full memberships including all classes, pool use and gym access from £20 a month.