A WINDFALL is set to make a splash at a Rugby sports centre.
Rugby Borough Council (RBC) has obtained over £187,000 from the government’s Swimming Pool Support Fund for environmental improvements at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Centre (QDJC).
The funding will provide solar panels, LED lighting and plant insulation – meaning the centre’s facilities will be able to function more efficiently.
Administered by Sport England, the fund helps local authorities in England to support public leisure facilities with swimming pools – which have been under threat from rising costs and ageing buildings.
The QDJC is run on behalf of RBC by charitable social enterprise GLL under its Better brand.
RBC’s Leisure and Wellbeing spokesman Coun Adam Daly said: “This is brilliant news for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Leisure Centre, ensuring its financial and environmental sustainability for many years to come.
“I am delighted that Rugby Borough Council in conjunction with GLL were able to secure this government grant for such an important project. I look forward to seeing the works progress at the centre soon.”
Nicola Wood, Better’s Partnership Manager in the region, said the money would be used to invest in energy-saving measures that will save both CO2 and money.
She added: “Making facilities more sustainable guarantees their longevity and helps us meet the needs of many more customers.”
RBC built the centre in Bruce Williams Way in 2013 to replace the town’s 40-year-old Ken Marriott Leisure Centre. It now attracts around 40,000 visits every month.
During the last decade, the centre has become home to a number of the borough’s sports clubs and organisations, including Rugby Swimming Club, Rugby Sport for the Disabled, and Rugby and Northampton Athletics Club.
Thousands of young Rugbeians have learned to swim at the centre, with more than 2,000 pupils attending swimming lessons every week.
