AS gymnasts lamented the closure of what is believed to be the country's oldest working gymnasium the Friends of the Marsh Family were celebrating the preservation of Leigh's best known playing fields.

Both the Ullswater Street gym and the Marsh Playing Fields off Wigan Road were gifts to the people of Leigh by the Marsh family.

And in 2002, 100 years to the day after William Edward Marsh presented it to the town, Leigh Gymnastics Club leader Jill Orrell was handed the keys to the building which is part of the Wigan and Leigh College complex.

With the closure of the Railway Road campus the gymnasium has become a casualty but gym users are hopeful that they will soon be back there.

When fears for the gym's future were first revealed Jill Orrell told the Journal: “I am sure we could attract funding to help restore this historic building to its former glory. Its history is fantastic. When it was built it was the best gym in the area with the highest standard of equipment. We would like to think it will be fully restored and its future protected.

“With the 2012 Olympics fast approaching, this is an ideal time for encouraging youths to abandon “street culture” get focused and divert energy into something positive and rewarding such as gymnastics.”

Leigh MP Andy Burnham has pledged his support to the gym club's fight.

“It is a brilliant club and I am 100pc behind Jill’s plans to secure the future of the building as a part of Leigh’s history,” he said.

Since the Marsh Gymnasium closed gym club activities have been transferred to the college media centre, the former Leigh Grammar School in Railway Road.

A grant bid to fund the restoration of the Marsh Gymnasium in Ullswater Street will be considered next Thursday (Sep 9) by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

College managers have met with representatives of the local community, including councillors and users of the gymnasium which forms part of the existing site, to explain the proposed method of disposal of the Railway Road site.

The whole site has been advertised for sale, though the College has sought to protect the future of the gymnasium, through a requirement on any interested developer to provide a long-term lease to a Trust which would then be able to continue operating the gymnasium.

A spokesman for the college said: "We have supported the existing users of the gymnasium by arranging temporary accommodation for them. This will allow disposal arrangements to be put in place and any refurbishment works in the gymnasium to be undertaken.

"We are aware that existing users are making good progress to secure funding for this refurbishment, but feels it is important that contingency plans are also put in place.

"We continue to be supportive of attempts to secure the future of the gymnasium, and are working hard with interested parties to help this to happen."