Designs for the new climbing walls and aerial assault course that will comprise part of Plymouth's £46.5m Life Centre have been revealed. The major new leisure development will feature five areas - three climbing walls, a bouldering area and an aerial assault course - to provide facilities for beginners and elite climbers. Under the plans, there will be a total of 870sq m (9,365sq ft) of climbing area at the

University of Edinburgh has launched its new £4.8m, three-storey gym extension which will provide around 1,900sq m of additional sports conditioning and physical activity space. The new three-storey building on the site of an old brewery incorporates below-ground vaults, which were once used to store kegs of beer and have not been open since being used as air raid shelters during World War II. The revamp means that Pleasance Sports

A new £75,000 outdoor gym facility has been installed by Southwark Council on the site of a former pub in Burgess Park, South London. Fitness and weight training equipment designed for users of all ages have been provided as part of the council's bid to overhaul the park. The gym facility has been funded by the Aylesbury NDC - now called the Creation Trust - and aims to help residents

A new £5.6m swimming pool and fitness centre has opened in Brighouse, West Yorkshire - four years after the town's former pool complex closed. Designed by Saunders Boston and built by Willmott Dixon, the new facility has double the swimming space of its predecessor - 432sq m (4,650sq ft) and boasts a 25m, six-lane main pool. Other facilities include a 20m learner pool, a 65-station fitness suite and a multi-purpose

The future of London's Europa Gymastics Centre has been secured with the unveiling of plans to build a new home for the facility in Crayford. A new venue is to be built on the Samas Roneo site, which has been donated to the London Borough of Bexley by the housing developer and landowner, Barratt Homes. The new Maiden Lane facility aims to boost access for the entire community and will

Leisure sector organisations have issued a mixed response to the chancellor's Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) published yesterday (20 October). George Osborne announced a 25 per cent cut in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) budget, which will run over the course of the review period to 2014-15. Culture secretary Jeremy Hunt insisted it was a 'good settlement' and will help enable the government to "protect our sporting and

East Cambridgeshire District Council (ECDC) has agreed to put forward concept designs for a proposed new leisure complex in Ely for consideration by planners. The Roberts Limbrick-designed proposals would see an eco-friendly and sustainable venue built to replace the existing Paradise Pool facility, including a six-lane, 25m swimming pool and a six-court sports hall. A small children's leisure water area, an additional fitness area, family changing facilities and a car

A ceremony is to be held on 18 October to mark the topping out of a new £12m leisure centre, which is being built on a site near Matlock, Derbyshire. Donna Kellogg, former Commonwealth Games badminton gold medallist, and local dignitaries will attend at the event in a bid to help celebrate the construction milestone. London-based Morgan Sindall was chosen by Derbyshire Dales District Council (DDDC) to build the Central

Health club operator Anytime Fitness has revealed plans for a comprehensive refurbishment and redesign programme. The company appointed New Jersey, US-based Fabiano Designs to come up with a new design scheme for all its clubs and will now embark on a revamp programme that includes all of it's 1,400 clubs. Fabiano was tasked with coming up with a new corporate colour scheme as part of plans to give the clubs

Local residents in Belper, Derbyshire, are being asked to comment on two design options for the town's proposed new leisure complex. Amber Valley Borough Council (AVBC) is working alongside Leeds-based Landmark Cannon on the project, which is being planned for a site off Field Lane and will help improve local leisure provision. One of the designs - now on display at several locations around the town - is a water-based

Glasgow-based Barr + Wray has been appointed by main contractor Farrans Construction, on behalf of North Down Borough Council, to install the 50m swimming pool and associated plant works at a new leisure complex in Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. The new £38m facility – designed by McAdam Design with S&P Architects – will be located at Valentine Playing Fields. The project, which includes a £15m investment from the Northern

Pellikaan Construction is set to start demolition work on a former school building in Horley, Surrey, which is making way for a new £7.5m leisure centre development. The Holland-based contractor has already commenced work to prepare the site for the demolition of Court Lodge Secondary School, which is to get underway on 17 September. Masonry from the existing building will be crushed on site and reused to provide hardcore for

The Royal Glenora Club in Edmonton, Canada, re-opened recently following a CA$15m (£9.2m) redevelopment. The centrepiece of the project was the creation of a CA$8m (£4.9m), 1,300sq m (14,000sq ft) aquatic centre which opened on 28 June. The only facility of its kind in western Canada, the new centre is contained within a fully enclosed glass structure with a retractable roof, created and installed by OpenAire. With a sensor for

Calderdale Council has announced that two new swimming pools and fitness facilities at Brighouse and Sowerby Bridge are due to open on 25 October and 22 November respectively. The £10.5m project - designed by Saunders Boston and delivered by contractor Willmott Dixon - has been part-funded by the sale of Leeds-Bradford International Airport in 2007. Both of the new centres will include a 25m, six-lane swimming pool; a learner pool

Belfast-based company Farrans Construction has been appointed by North Down Borough Council (NDBC) to deliver a new leisure complex in Bangor. The new £38m facility – designed by McAdam Design with S&P Architects – will include Northern Ireland's first Olympic-sized swimming pool and will be located at Valentine Playing Fields. Other facilities at the planned complex will include a fun pool, a fitness suite, an eight-court sports hall, a climbing

Enfield Council has begun consultations with Fusion Leisure over a £8.9m redevelopment programme of its leisure services and facilities. Work is due to start on the first centre, Southbury Leisure Centre, in November followed by Southgate and Albany Leisure Centres in 2011. The centres are managed by Fusion on behalf of the council. Proposed changes at Southbury include improvements to the gym, refurbishment of the dry changing areas and improvements

Archial Architects has completed a £640,000 refurbishment and gym extension at the University of Essex in Colchester. The project is part of a larger £1.4m upgrade of the facility. The new two-storey extension to the sports centre's existing gym marks the completion of the first stage of the University's Strategic Sports Development Plan. The project has seen a new 130-station fitness suite being installed at the ground floor, while facilities

Construction work has begun on a new leisure centre in Lewisham. The Loampit Vale Leisure Centre will include two swimming pools - an eight-lane, 25m competition pool and a 20m training pool - a 100-station fitness club, two group exercise studios, a climbing wall, a crèche and a café. Plans also include a full-service health and beauty spa. The centre has been designed by LA Architects, who worked with specialist

The Kentish Town Sports Centre in London reopened yesterday (26 July) following a comprehensive £25m redevelopment of the Grade II-listed Victorian building. Facilities at the new centre include three swimming pools, a 90-station health and fitness club equipped by Technogym, a Kinesis area, a Power Plate zone, a large group exercise studio and a Wii Fit interactive zone. Work also included the refurbishment of the centre’s heritage features – such

Reigate and Banstead Borough Council (RBBC) has appointed Holland-based Pellikaan Construction to build a new £7.5m leisure centre on the site of a former school in Horley, Surrey. Work is due to start on the demolition of existing buildings at Court Lodge Secondary School in late September in order to enable construction work on the S&P Architects-designed facility to get underway in November. A six-lane, 25m swimming pool with ramped

Plans to replace the Victoria Leisure Centre in Sneinton, Nottingham, with a new £9m facility have been given the final approval by central government. The plans were given the greenlight by Nottingham City Council in June, but as the building is located within a conservation area and is owned by the council, the plans required the approval of Eric Pickles, the secretary of state for Communities and Local Government. Designs

The £12.6m redevelopment of Leatherhead Leisure Centre, Surrey, has entered its final phase after work on the new build element of the scheme was completed. A new 439sq m (4,725sq ft) fitness suite and aerobics studio, sauna and steamrooms, three therapy rooms and a four-court multi-use games area are among the new facilities at the venue, which is operated on behalf of the Mole Valley District Council (MVDC) by leisure

Marshall Streets Baths in Soho, London, is due to reopen its doors to the public 26 July, following the completion of a £25m renovation led by Westminster City Council (WCC). The historic 160-year-old baths, which have been shut for more than 10 years, have undergone work to restore its original Sicilian marble-lined pool and green Swedish marble walls. A new purpose-built leisure centre has also been created at the site,

Bath and North East Somerset Council (BANES) has revealed that it made a return of less than £7m from the Bath Spa scheme, following the settlement of a legal dispute. In November 2009, the local authority said that it had settled its long-running legal battle with contractor Carillion and architect Nicholas Grimshaw and Partners over the rising cost of the project. BANES' statement of accounts show that the council received

The £6.4m Djanogly Community Leisure Centre in Nottingham has opened to the public. Facilities at the centre, designed by Archial Architects and being built by ISG Regions, include a six-lane, 25m swimming pool with full moveable floor, a changing village, a 50-station fitness suite supplied by Technogym, sauna and steam rooms and a dance/activity studio. The new building has been designed to fit on the site without imposing on the

The development of a new multi-million pound sports complex in Basildon, Essex, has reached the next stage after work to construct the venue's steel structure was completed. Basildon District Council (BDC) has announced that water testing has now started on Basildon Sporting Village's 50m pool, with the concrete lining to be filled with water to test its integrity before tiling and rendering can begin. The water testing phase will take

New facilities have opened at a leisure centre in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, after work on the first £1.3m phase of a wider refurbishment of the venue was completed. Lakeland Forum now boasts a new entrance, an enhanced reception area, a viewing gallery overlooking the 25m, six-lane swimming pool and additional facilities for disabled users as part of stage one. Improvements have also included the refurbishment of the Erne room and