WARRINGTON Borough Council is entitled to receive rent from crisis-hit DW Sports until 2022 as part of a lease deal, it has been confirmed.

DW gym in Warrington town centre, on Academy Way, announced its closure this week.

It came after the firm called in the administrators due to the effects of coronavirus.

In 2016, the council bought the building occupied by DW Sports in a deal totalling £4 million.

The Labour-run authority has been leasing the property to the business.

The council has issued a statement amid uncertainty over the impact on its anticipated rental income.

A spokesman said: “The site was bought as part of the town centre land acquisition and was always anticipated as a future development within Time Square.

“The council, as owner of the property, is entitled to receive rent up until the end of the existing lease, which is 2022. Any change to this would need negotiating with the tenant.”