Climbers from across Plymouth and beyond are tonight celebrating the news that the Life Centre climbing wall which they fought to save will be retained.

“A godsend”, “an accepting place” and “ a place where people connect” are some of the words people have used to describe the wall which has been providing joy for years to all abilities of climbers and is a much-valued facility on the national competition circuit.

Tonight climbers will join together in celebration at the Life Centre marking a victory for a passionate campaign which involved enthusiasts, sporting groups from across the South West and councillors from the city.

Regular climber Ike Green, who was behind plans for an upcoming rally to oppose the move by Plymouth City Council’s Labour administration and Plymouth Active Leisure to replace the climbing wall with a soft play area before today’s U-turn, said she was so pleased this “amazing place” would continue.

“It was heart-breaking when we heard it was going to close, not just for us here in Plymouth but for the wider climbing community. This is our only school gym here and it’s where people from all over the county come to learn rope skills.

“Having the tallest walls in Devon, it is a pathway for elite climbers and provides training for outdoor climbing teachers who go on to teach on Dartmoor and all corners of the Westcountry.”

But she was keen to stress how welcoming the site was for all climbers of all ages and abilities: “I am a below average climber and I may be climbing next to an exceptional crusher (someone who climbs really hard) but everyone treats each other the same.

“I purposely bought my house five minutes up the road because I love this place so much – it is an integral part of me now and is a place where people get to be part of a community. Everyone is accepted and everyone makes friends here.”

The rally planned for Saturday, June 13 will now be an outreach event to attract new climbers as Plymouth City Council says the site is still vulnerable unless more people use it – it had proposed a change of use because the wall was  losing money and needed investment.

John Esherwood has been coming to the climbing wall, used as a venue for the Youth Climbing Series, every week with Clean Ascent, a charity that helps people in recovery from alcohol and substance addiction. He said the facility had been “a godsend”.

“I have been sober for a year and the climbing wall has been my go to. I look forward to it and it gives me the motivation to carry on.

“When I’m on the wall, it’s just me and the wall and I don’t have time to think about anything else. I’m going to keep coming here.

“When I heard the council was going to make it soft play, it was great for the kids but not for the adults. The climbing wall is for everyone. I have seen a six-year-old on it and my neighbour is 71 and she is going to start.”

A staff member said there had been an amazing amount of support for the climbing wall from organisations and politicians as well as users and he thanked the local media for its coverage.

Opposition leaders from the Conservative and Reform parties on Plymouth City Council got involved in the campaign to save the centre, with crucial talks believed to have been taking place this morning ahead of the announcement.