NEW OPENING
BASILDON SPORTING VILLAGE
David Thompson reviews the Essex-based, Olympic- standard sporting facility that’s set to benefit both elite and community users
A
s London 2012 draws near, Essex is already enjoying its share of Olympic legacy. Sat- urday 30 April was the official
opening day for Basildon Sporting Vil- lage, a £38m state-of-the-art sport and leisure complex, built on a scale matched by very few other sites in the UK. With approved Pre-Games Training
Camp status for Olympic athletics, boxing, fencing, judo, swimming, rhythmic and artistic gymnastics, as well as Paralympic athletics, boccia, goalball, judo, wheelchair fencing and swimming, the site is destined to be a big draw for top level athletes and sports teams and a major sporting hub for the Essex com- munity. In fact, the Japanese swimming team has already signed up to use the village as its 2012 training venue. Elite athletes, professional teams,
amateur clubs and casual leisure centre users have equal access to the village’s outstanding multi-sport facilities. And during the lead-up to the Olympic and
Paralympic Games, members will have a unique opportunity to train alongside Olympic and Paralympic athletes as the facility will be open to the public throughout elite training schedules. “The Japanese athletes have not asked
for segregated training so it’s likely that local swimmers will find an Olympic athlete in the next lane,” says SLM regional director Duncan Jefford. “We hope that these international sportsmen and women, as well as local and regional elite athletes, will inspire local users to be active and make the most of the fantastic facilities on their doorstep.”
Starter’s orders A joint venture between Community Solutions for Leisure (CSL) and Basildon Council, the complex is operated by Sports and Leisure Management (SLM) under its ‘Everyone Active’ national brand. Built on the site of a former swimming
pool and gymnastics club, the village was originally proposed back in 2000, but it took the success of London’s Olympic bid and the resulting increase in interest and fund- ing to get the green light to proceed in 2007. With funding obtained from
Essex County Council, (through the Homes and Communities Agency), Sport England, the East of England Development
A 10m climbing wall offers visitors an impressive entrance into the facility
Agency (EEDA) and the Veolia ES Clean- away Pitsea Marshes Trust, the project has been carefully managed to ensure the right results for all stakeholders. Basildon Council set out to appoint
one company that could take the project from conception to completion and beyond, so CSL was formed by SLM and construction and regeneration group Morgan Sindall to jointly provide design, build and operation services for the sporting village. S&P Architects and PMP leisure consul-
tants worked closely with the council and the design team to ensure the aim of cre- ating a centre of sporting excellence was realised in a way that would benefit the region as a whole, through consultations and workshops with members of local sports groups to identify and deliver the best outcomes for all interested parties. “One of the greatest challenges
was keeping the key partners happy about their investment in the project, so good internal communications were imperative. However, we also had a responsibility to meet the needs of everyone who used the two previous
26 Read Sports Management online
sportsmanagement.co.uk/digital Issue 2 2011 © cybertrek 2011
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