Council Release Timetable for Closure of Noel St Leisure Centre

Residents of St Anns and Sneinton have been up in arms about the Council's move to close down the Victoria Baths Leisure Centre (see feature:  https://publish.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/nottinghamshire/2008/02/391928.html), and will meet on Sunday to plan to block this as no alternative site is being offered locally ( http://www.savevictoriabaths.org.uk/). The Council's Leisure Centres Transformation programme, released in 2004, stipulated a vision for fewer, but better leisure centres, and Noel St was ear-marked for closure, but a campaign by local residents ( http://www.zipscan.co.uk/noelstreet/index.htm) resulted in assurances that the facilities would not be closed until a new pool was built.

Rumours of a swimming pool being integrated into the new Djanogly Academy school were abound in 2005, and in June 2007 the local New Deal for Communities body (locally renamed Neighbourhood Development Company) offered a £2 million grant to the city council for the development of these new facilities, estimated at a cost of £5.9 million in total. The £2m offer is subject to a Community Use Agreement.

Architects firm SMC Architects will be paid just over £320,000 to come up with plans for the new pool and gym, and a public consultation on draft designs is scheduled for this spring. Planning approval and tenders for the contract will be sought before construction begins, timetabled to start in January 2009. The Council intends the Djanogly swimming facility to be a replacement for Noel St Leisure Centre, which it intends to close when the new pool is complete. The project timetable (accessible online, see link below) aims to complete the Djanogly development by April 2010, and the Council intends to keep Noel St Leisure Centre open until that time, 'subject to any major structural or plant failure occurring'.

The 'Replacement Swimming Pool for Noel Street Leisure Centre in partnership with Djanogly City Academy' paper, accessible online at: [ http://open.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/comm/download3.asp?dltype=inline&filename=31617/Noel.doc], also promises to take steps to prevent people using the Noel St buildings once the Leisure Centre has been closed. It says: “It is recognised that once a building becomes vacant it often can act as a focus for anti social behaviour. Careful consideration has been given to ensure that the Noel Street building is appropriately secured at the time of closure.”