Council gets green light to redevelop Derbyshire town’s ‘dated’ leisure centre – and promises ‘amazing new facility’

North East Derbyshire District Council (NEDDC) has been granted planning permission for its new Clay Cross Active leisure centre. It will be built on the site of the current Sharley Park Leisure Centre in Clay Cross, with works set to commence in early 2023.

The new centre will be a low-carbon, low-energy building – functioning as a hub for the community. It will incorporate a gym space, soft play area, swimming pool, café and TAG Active facilities – along with the North East Derbyshire Citizens Advice and other services.

The gym and swimming pools will remain open while works are underway. The fitness studio, sports hall, spinning studio and squash courts, however, are closed while the redevelopment is completed.

Built by the Council’s development partner, Alliance Leisure, the new facility is expected to open in winter 2024 and is funded by the Clay Cross Town Fund and NEDDC – along with council partners.

NEDDC cabinet member for leisure, Cllr Alan Powell, said: “We are delighted to get planning permission for the new leisure facility at Clay Cross and are excited to start work on site.

“The current facility is old and dated and our residents have said they wanted a new facility which will bring the community together, and we are delighted to say this will be happening imminently.

“With climate change at the heart of all our decisions, the centre will be low-carbon, have solar PV and air source heat pumps and will be an asset to the community – bringing together other services to make a real hub for Clay Cross.”

Clay Cross Town Board deputy chair and NEDDC deputy leader, Cllr Charlotte Cupit said: “We are delighted to get the go-ahead for this amazing facility for all the community to enjoy. We listened when you said you wanted a new facility and this will be just that and more, with other partners involved, and it will be a real hub for the community for years to come.

Julia Goddard, senior business development manager at Alliance Leisure, said: “Alliance Leisure’s role in the project is to deliver a leisure and wellbeing facility that the local community can be proud of. Having delivered over 200 leisure developments across the UK we are bringing this expertise to our delivery of Clay Cross Active. Our team will be assisting at every stage of the project and look forward to seeing the new centre open in 2024.”

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While the site will remain partially open, current leisure centre members can also use the other three centres in the district as part of their membership deal. These are the Dronfield Sports Centre, Eckington Swimming Pool and Fitness Centre and Killamarsh Active. Some classes may also be rescheduled, taking place at these alternate venues – visit the leisure centre website here for more details.