Muslim mum slams leisure centre for allowing men into sauna during women-only sessions

Nusrat Ahmed said she was ‘appalled’ when she discovered that the pool in Levenshulme, Manchester, is overlooked by the public

Fury: Nusrat Ahmed went along to an advertised ‘Women’s Only’ session

A Muslim mum has slammed leisure centre bosses for allowing men into the sauna and steam room during women only sessions.
Nusrat Ahmed went along to an advertised ‘Women’s Only’ session at the new Arcadia Leisure Centre, in Manchester, on Monday .
But the mum-of-three said she was ‘appalled’ when she discovered that the sauna and steam rooms were still available to men and the pool is overlooked by the public.
Nusrat, from Burnage, said showers and changing rooms are also mixed and there is ‘no aspect of privacy’ whilst walking around in swimwear.

Fury: The new Arcadia Library and Leisure Centre in Levenshulme

She says Greenwich Leisure Limited’s lack of foresight could ‘offend or exclude’ a lot of people who intended to use the centre, reports the MEN.
Read more: Human faeces found in swimming pool forces public baths to close
She said: “When I heard Arcadia was opening I was really excited and extremely pleased I would no longer have to travel to Hough End or Moss Side. But when I went in I was really shocked to find out we had not been catered for.
“Who did they consult with? I can’t think of anyone who would think that was appropriate, especially because of the diverse community in Levenshulme.
“It’s not just religious women either. For a lot of women it’s just more comfortable to have a proper women’s session.
“It would only take up two hours a week and it would be really well used. Hough End and Moss Side are always packed during the women’s only sessions.”
Nusrat is urging women to express their concerns about the facilities to GLL.
She said: “It is not rocket science that when something is described as being ‘women only’ then you would literally expect that.
“If the local community have been consulted as stakeholders then I am sure the layout and planning of the timetable would not be such that would offend or exclude a large proportion of those intending to use the centre.
“I would have hoped that in the year 2016 decision makers would have some idea of diverse communities and knowledge awareness of their basic cultures.”
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In November Sheryle Mardell called for female only sauna sessions at the former Levenshulme Baths, on Cromwell Grove, after a group of men sang ‘my milkshake brings all the boys to the yard’ as she stepped out of the sauna.

Sauna: Nusrat is urging women to express their concerns about the facilities

At the time, pool bosses said they would be ‘happy to review’ the operation but reminded users that the baths were due to close.
Andrew Smith, partnership manager for GLL in Manchester said the new centre was designed to provide ‘a flexible changing environment’ to accommodate either mixed or single sex sessions to take place in either of the swimming pools.
He said: “There is a commitment to the programme that has been developed following consultation with the community and we have worked on the principle of providing a ‘lift and shift’ model from the old Levenshulme Pools; the Sauna and Steam room was fully mixed at Levenshulme and therefore this has been continued at Arcadia.
“Over the coming weeks, as the centre becomes more established and usage patterns become settled, we will continue to gather feedback from users regarding their experiences and thoughts around the current programme.
"These will be fed back and discussed in partnership with Manchester City Council.”