a chevron alcove, grandstand building and cascades. English Heritage was closely involved in the project and the result is an homage to old and new. The grandstand, for example, has been seamlessly integrated into the new building and importantly retains all of its existing features. Another challenge was the fact that on

one side was the Lido, which couldn’t be moved or redesigned in any way, and on the other side was a protective green belt boundary, which meant that only a limited amount of space could be allocated to accommodate all of the indoor facilities. A modular, rectangular build was

created, enabling the indoor facilities to be effectively ‘sandwiched’ between the Lido and the green belt boundary.

making a splash

The indoor swimming pool is a point of particular pride among those involved in the project, not least because it was the subject of a potential funding deficit. The council allocated suffi cient

funds for a 25m pool. However, it approved the construction of a 50m pool with the aim of fi nding the additional funds elsewhere. Thankfully, Sport England and the LDA stepped in to offer the remaining £3.75m required to complete the scheme. The swimming pool features a

moveable fl oor and boom. This allows it to be split into two separate 25m pools

june 2010 © cybertrek 2010

The main sports hall caters for a wide range of activities, from basketball to badminton and from martial arts classes to table tennis

with a depth ranging from 0m to 2m, thereby enabling a wide range of activities to take place within the same space. The result is the potential simultaneous use of the pool area by everyone from elite athletes in training to mother and baby swimming lessons. It also features a hoist, which allows disabled users to access and enjoy the facility. Nevertheless, although the primary

objective for the complex is to deliver a community use facility, interest has already been expressed in the complex by countries participating in the forthcoming London Olympics, as a potential venue in which their aquatics teams can train. Members of the ‘Hillingdon Best’, an elite swimming club comprising the very best swimmers from local swimming clubs throughout the borough, have also chosen the complex as their training venue. “The primary objective for the complex

is as a community use facility that’s open and accessible to all,” says Cllr Henry Higgins, Cabinet Member for Culture, Sport and Leisure. “Whatever our residents’ aspirations, from having fun and keeping fi t to achieving sporting greatness, this centre provides opportunities for all.

“Along with the new Botwell Green

Sports centre, due to open this summer, we really will have some of the best sports provision around.” Botwell will bring the council’s total investment in leisure facilities to more than £50m.

diverse offering

In addition to the swimming pools, new facilities at the Hillingdon Sports and Leisure Complex include an athletics stadium complete with a Level 1-graded 400m running track and long and triple jump pits, 3G five-a-side synthetic pitches, a main sports hall that’s used for everything from basketball to badminton and from martial arts classes to table tennis, an indoor cycling studio, two group exercise studios with semi-sprung floors, a Pétanque terrain which consists of five pistes, and a large gym. All of the fi tness equipment within the

health and fi tness area has been supplied by Matrix Fitness Systems. This includes 19 Matrix Fitness Tomahawk S Series bikes in the indoor cycling studio and a 100-station gym with a combination of cardiovascular equipment from the Matrix 7 Series, resistance equipment from the G7 range, and IFI-accredited equipment from the Johnson range. As part of the council’s commitment to ensuring that the complex is accessible to all, the Hillingdon Sports and Leisure Complex is aiming to be fully IFI- accredited by the summer.

Read Health Club Management online at healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital 37

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