On Monday 25 August 2025, Whitehorse City Council confirmed its commitment to the in-house management of Council’s two Aqualink facilities, Aqualink Box Hill Aqualink and Aqualink Nunawading. This means the previous Council decision to explore external management models through a tender process will no longer go ahead.  

In 2023, Council resolved to explore external management options for a package of aquatics, leisure and recreation facilities due to a number of operational and financial sustainability challenges in the then-current in-house model. As a first step towards this resolution, an Expression of Interest process was conducted for the management of the Learn to Swim programs at these facilities. The resulting contracts came into effect on 1 July 2025. The next phase was to undertake a request for tender (RFT) process for the management of the remaining services at the two Aqualink sites.  

However, over the past two years substantial progress has been made in strengthening operations, creating an opportunity to reassess the delivery model before proceeding to market. Improvements achieved since 2023 include the completion of the Learn to Swim procurement process, approval of the Enterprise Agreement 2025 to better align employment conditions with the sector, enhanced membership experience including the introduction of Reformer Pilates, improved financial performance through successful membership and attendance campaigns, and changes to fees and charges to better reflect the market.  

These changes have helped put us in a strong position to continue managing services in-house and support long-term sustainability. While management will remain in-house, Council is committed to continuous improvement and will continue working to strengthen the service delivery model, ensuring our programs and facilities meet evolving community needs.  

We thank everyone who took part in the engagement process.  

If you would like more information or have any questions about this decision, please visit our Improving Leisure Services YourSay page or contact our Customer Service team on 9262 6333. We also recognise and thank our staff, whose ongoing professionalism and commitment provide the foundation for the future of our aquatic services.

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