SELLING off a former leisure centre site that has planning permission for over 200 homes “makes sense,” Slough’s finance chief has said.

A sub-committee has recommended to next week’s cabinet meeting to sell off the Montem Leisure Centre site in Montem Lane in order to help reduce Slough Borough Council’s £760m borrowing debt and £479m blackhole.

It is unknown how much the site will be sold off for and who the preferred buyer is as that is detailed in confidential reports, but the paper says the local authority has received a higher bid than £13.5m.

Council leader James Swindlehurst (Lab: Cippenham Green) said the bid is “good and strong” and hinted the buyer is a “very reliable housebuilder,” who has developed “really attractive schemes in the borough”.

READ MORE: Slough's Montem Leisure Centre site set to be sold off

In a joint venture with regeneration company Muse, the council’s company Slough Urban Renewal received planning permission last year to build 212 homes, 20 per cent of which were affordable, at the demolished site.

But the local authority is scaling back its capital projects and can no longer carry the scheme through to realisation.

Speaking at the first cabinet sub-committee for asset disposals, Cllr Rob Anderson (Lab: Britwell & Northborough), lead member for financial oversight and council assets, said it “makes sense” to part ways with the site.

He said: “I think it’s the right thing to do now in the current situation. We have at least achieved some increase in value from the site by the work that has been done to get it through to planning and, in the current situation, it’s better for us to take the bird in the hand, as it were, and sell the site now.

READ MORE: Demolition of Maidenhead's ex-leisure centre to soon happen

“Somebody else could potentially make a considerable profit out of it but could potentially take the risk of not doing that. So, we’re not in that risk business anymore.

“It makes sense that we move it on and use the welcome money to reduce our borrowing.”

The meeting took place on Thursday, October 13.