47


 


Brace says: “The benefit of a new building, not just changing


something, is you can drip feed news about what is coming from early stages and so build up interest. “The first stage was that we consulted people around options


available, and having chosen this one worked with local sports clubs to hear their aspirations.” Part of the reason for the council seeking better sports facili-


ties was to try to reduce health inequalities among the local pop- ulation resulting from lack of fitness. Basildon is not particularly different from anywhere in facing these issues, but the Sporting Village has given it a means to tackle them by creating an attrac- tive environment with the most modern facilities. “Our target in year one is for 850,000 visits, which was a 20


per cent increase over the old centres,” Brace says. “In the first four months we have been achieving bang on that,


which is interesting as usage figures in leisure facilities usually vary from month to month, but we have seen around 80,000 a month consistently and we might even hit one million in a year.” He adds: “There is no link with Olympics, but if someone


watches the 50-metre breast stroke, or something, and feels inspired to participate they can come here.” The project was developed as a public/private partnership


between the council, Morgan Sindall Investments and sports centre operator SLM, now known as Everyone Active. As a site it was straightforward, as the village is a greenfield site on part of the surrounding park.


...continued on page 49


Basildon Sporting Village


Exterior © Morgan Sindall


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5