Royton Leisure Centre complete
Oldham’s new state-of-the-art £8million, Royton Leisure Centre, opened to the public on 28 September.
Oldham Council, Oldham Community Leisure (OCL), Willmott Dixon and partners came together to celebrate the completion of the facility, which will provide superior leisure activities for the area. The Byron Street-based centre, funded by Oldham Council, will be run by Oldham Community Leisure.
Members and casual users will have a variety of facilities to choose from including a six-lane, 25-metre Olympic legacy swimming pool with spectator seating and a separate learner pool, two exercise/dance studios and an 80-station fitness gym fitted with Technogym’s OMNIA 3 functional training equipment, Element strength stations, Excite cardio range, Group Cycle bikes and a range of free weights.
As part of the Olympic Facilities Legacy Fund the new centre was awarded a grant of £134,000 from Sport England to support the pool’s installation and ensure the legacy of London 2012 lives on. The new pool is the same design as one of the Olympic training pools.
Gladstone Health and Leisure has supplied all the membership management software for the new site, which includes a specially developed access control system, enabling specific facility usage to be collected via a touchscreen at turnstiles. Oldham Community Leisure are using the system to capture swimming usage at the reception turnstiles. All-inclusive members simply answer the question “Are you going to swim today” with a Yes/No answer, which is in turn stored in the database for inclusion within the system reports.
The shutters have now closed on the old, nearby Royton Sports Centre for the final time. Work will soon start on the demolition of the old facility to make way for the new 60-space car park, which will be complete in March 2016. There will be a temporary car park available on the former Byron Street School playground until the new one is ready.
Jim McMahon, Oldham Council Leader, took part in an exclusive tour of the centre, alongside Stuart Lockwood, OCL’s Chief Executive, Anthony Dillon, Willmott Dixon’s Northern Managing Director, and other representatives.
Councillor McMahon said: “After years of planning and hard work the opening of one of the borough’s new Olympic legacy centres is here. It is a modern, stunning and state-of-the-art centre for the residents of Royton, Shaw and Crompton to enjoy.
“This whole development has been very much a local and joint-working effort with several Oldham businesses and organisations grafting hard to get the job done on time in a professional manner. I’d like to thank all involved for their commitment which will bring in local employment, fun and health benefits to the area.
“We’re on an incredible journey for the borough with several regeneration projects well underway and nearing completion – including our new Oldham Sports Centre. This is one of the many projects that I hope residents will be proud of and embrace.”
Stuart Lockwood said: “The new Royton Leisure Centre will become a central hub for adults and children of all ages and abilities, providing a better and more tailored offering than ever before.
“Our team, in partnership with Oldham Council, have worked extremely hard over the last few years to bring this project to life and it’s very rewarding to see the facility complete. Our members have already expressed their excitement to try the new facilities and activities. We hope new members will be enticed by this new and improved offer.”
Charles Johnston, Property Director at Sport England, said: “The pool at Royton Leisure Centre will ensure that the legacy of London 2012 continues to thrive in Oldham. Legacy pools have the potential to benefit thousands of people and I am really pleased that the local community in Royton and surrounding areas will be able to benefit from this innovative scheme.”
Until September 28 anyone who signs up to an Oldham Active membership will pay no joining fee. For more information log onto http://oclactive.co.uk/
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NOTES TO EDITORS
For further information contact Andrew Rudkin, Oldham Council’s Marketing and Communications Team, on 0161 770 5034 or email: andrew.rudkin@oldham.gov.uk
