Manor Park latest 12 March 2009

The detailed planning application for the new Manor Park Leisure Centre has been submitted by East Northamptonshire Council.  The proposed development by East Northamptonshire Council, working in partnership with Rushden Town Council, aims to provide residents with access to wet and dry leisure facilities in one purpose built building.

The modern, energy efficient leisure centre is to be located at Manor Park and represents a £13m investment in the area's sports, fitness and leisure facilities.

The planning application number is EN/09/01990/FUL.  Copies of the application form, plans and correspondence (including letters of support and/or objection) can be viewed either online at www.east-northamptonshire.gov.uk/planning or at our Customer Service Centre, Cedar Drive, Thrapston and Newton Road, Rushden.

To comment on the application you must do so in writing:
Via the East Northamptonshire Council website at Public Access
By e-mail to planningcomments@east-northamptonshire.gov.uk
By post to Development Control, East Northamptonshire Council, Cedar   Drive, Thrapston, Northants, NN14 4LZ.
By fax to 01832 734839

Consultation results
Click on designs to see what the leisure centre would loook like and public consultation to see a summary of the consultation and what's been changed as a result.  It includes:

 Leisure water facilities instead of a learner pool

• A floating floor in the main pool to facilitate swimming lessons and access for people with disabilities
• A privacy screen between the main pool and entrance atrium
• Increased flexible space for community meetings and events
• Increased parking provision
• Space for crèche and café facilities
• Bigger gym
• Adding a sauna and a steam room
• A 6-court rather than a 4-court Sports Hall

Ground Floor:

The entrance atrium provides visitors with a clear welcome to the Leisure Centre and the different facilities within the building

The reception is located at the centre of this naturally-lit space, which also houses a seating and viewing area and café.

Flexible space that can be used for a variety of purposes including crèche facilities is located to the left of the reception.

Following this direction, visitors will access separate male and female changing facilities both of which are wheelchair accessible and include provision for ambulant disabled people.  There is also a fully accessible dedicated shower and changing room and a separately accessible WC.

A highly flexible feature of the new facility, the hall provides space for numerous sports including hockey, football, basketball, volleyball, badminton, tennis and gymnastics and can be subdivided in order to allow different activities to take place at one time.

To the right of reception, visitors will find the changing village for the swimming pool, encompassing group changing space as well as family, disabled and single cubicles.

On accessing the pool hall, shallow leisure water is located to the right, including jets and fountains, and a 6-lane 25m swimming pool to the left.

The main pool includes a floating floor to facilitate aqua aerobics, group access for swimmers with a disability and teaching for smaller children, while a separate submersible platform allows access for individual swimmers with a disability.

The main pool runs from a depth of 0.9m to 1.8m whilst the leisure water reaches a maximum depth of 650mm.

First Floor

Stairs and a lift provide access to the first floor health and fitness suite, flexible dance studio space, fitness changing facilities, consultation room, and sauna and steam rooms. 

A flexible dance studio, which can be subdivided into two separate spaces lies at the top of the stairway.

To the right of the dance studio sits the sauna and stream room with adjacent male and female fitness changing both of which are wheelchair accessible and include provision for ambulant disabled people.  There is also a fully accessible dedicated shower and changing room. Access to these areas incorporates views down into the activity of the main pool hall below

Turning left at the top of the stairs provides access to the health & fitness suite and the dance studio. The fitness suite, which accommodates approximately 100 fitness stations and a free weights area, will allow members and guests to enjoy views out across the rugby pitches to the landscape beyond. 

The Manor Park Leisure Centre proposals bring wet and dry facilities together in one purpose built development. In addition to the modern swimming facilities, there would be dance and exercise studios, a health and fitness suite and a sports hall to accommodate no less than 10 different sports.  The expanded sports hall and increased flexible space should enable the new centre to accommodate the vast majority of activities currently held at the Pemberton Centre.

As well as delivering a modern, multi-sports facility in Rushden, the new centre is key to ambitious long-term regeneration plans for the town.

Not surprisingly, there has been much public interest in this project given its scale and importance.    In order to clear up any confusion, here are the responses to some fairly commonly-held views.

Myths and facts about the new centre   

What's next?

Following conclusion of the planning consultation period, the application will be considered at a meeting of the East Northamptonshire Development Control Committee, which members of the public are free to attend.  Even though it is the Council that is submitting the application, it is still legally required to consider the application itself, as the local planning authority.

The decision of the Development Control Committee will then be reviewed by the Government Office for the East Midlands (GOEM), which ensures national planning policies are applied within the region, and which will make the final decision on whether to approve the application.