Major update on future of new Newcastle leisure centre after £40m funding package signed off

The Local Democracy Reporting Service revealed earlier this week how the expected costs of building a major sports complex in West Denton had spiralled further. It comes after a series of setbacks and delays to have afflicted Newcastle City Council’s proposed facility, which was meant to open in summer 2024 but is not even under construction yet.

Amid concerns about the escalating cost of the scheme to taxpayers, which has jumped from an original £22.3 million in 2021 to £39.93 million today, Lib Dem opposition councillors mounted a special call-in procedure over the latest public funding request.

After a behind-closed-doors hearing on Thursday evening, which the press and public were barred from attending, it has now been confirmed that the £40 million investment will be allowed to proceed as planned.

The outer west of Newcastle has been without a swimming pool since the former pool on the West Denton Way site was closed in 2020 by operator GLL. It was later demolished in 2023, alongside the neighbouring library and customer service centre, to make way for the promised new leisure centre.

While the council has consistently said that the state-of-the-art centre will be delivered, the lack of progress has sparked fears among locals. With the facility now slated for a late 2027 opening, Westerhope resident Chris Parsons told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the delays had hurt a generation of young children growing up in the outer west without access to a local pool.

Having seen successful refurbishment projects at Elswick Pool and the City Baths, Mr Parsons questioned why the decision was made to build a new leisure centre from scratch. He said: “They could have refurbished the old pool and we could have had everything we needed. You have to ask whose brainchild was it [to build a new leisure centre].”

A cross-party letter submitted to the call-in hearing from councillors in both the Chapel ward and Denton and Westerhope warned that any further delay to the funding “deprives the community of a facility that once served the area for 50 years”.

The new Outer West Leisure Centre was awarded £19.8 million from the Levelling Up Fund in 2021. But, like many projects backed by the flagship Tory initiative, it has been hit hard by inflation.

Its latest funding package now also includes £11.2 million worth of Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) collected by the city council from developers, £2.5 million from Sport England, and £1.8 million from the council’s reserves.

A £1.4 million loan from the North East Combined Authority and a further £2.6 million of borrowing will also be needed to cover the heightened costs, which have already led to original contractors Willmott Dixon being replaced.

The council said on Friday that construction should now begin in the new year, once Northern Powergrid have rerouted a power cable running across the building site.

A spokesperson added: “The council is earmarking more than £11m of Community Infrastructure Levy Funding to the project which underlines its commitment to building this flagship development for the city in the Outer West that will offer residents first class leisure facilities. We remain committed to the use of CIL to support other projects across the city.

“We acknowledge the project has been subject to a series of delays, which is not unusual for a project of this complexity but are excited that work is now happening on site. We would like to thank residents for their patience and understanding.”

Lib Dem councillor Mike Cookson said it was “important to have sought appropriate assurances that the project is on a sound financial footing” and that the use of CIL funds would not jeopardise projects elsewhere.

He added: “There are lessons to learn from this process about how the council got here, and how to guarantee the financial viability of large-scale projects when they encounter significant cost increases.

“We look forward to further attention to the project’s risk management at forthcoming Finance and Budget and Audit Committee meetings. Our focus has always been to seek confidence that the project will benefit residents across the whole city, and we believe that the call-in process has worked exactly as it should.”