Grants secured for new leisure centre

Work on a new community leisure centre will start early in 2010 and should be completed for the autumn term.

Funding for the £1.3m centre, adjacent to Cox Green School, will come through grants from the Football Foundation, the Government and also from developers’ contributions.

The council's cabinet prioritisation sub-committee, which met on November 9, agreed to appoint construction company Beard to build the two-storey centre, which will provide:
* a 42-station BodyZone gym
* first floor multi-purpose  dance studio
* four changing rooms
* accessible changing rooms for  people with disabilities
* changing rooms for officials  and referees using the nearby sports pitches

Headteacher Ian Hylan said: "These facilities will allow us to offer the brilliant new creative and media diploma to students at all the local schools – it really does bring the X Factor to learning."

The £230,000 Football Foundation grant was achieved by the council working through the Berkshire and Buckinghamshire FA.

All the facilities will be available for community use and students at the other schools on the Cox Green campus – Lowbrook Primary and the new Manor Green School, currently under construction and due to open in September.