Forum Topic

How long has the Fountain Leisure centre actually got?

Was chatting to a friend whose kids attend swimming lessons there and she is convinced that it is going to shut in the new year.Her rationale is that the council is currently spending the bare minimum to keep it up to regulatory standards but now that the decision to close has been announced, they won't be spending any more. She believes that, once the consultation exercise is over, they will shut the place once the next big bill for repairs appears. They can claim that plans are being drawn up for a new centre but it remains to be seen whether something can be dreamed up that is feasible. The risk of both The Watermans and The Fountains being shut next year with no timetable for reopening seems real.Getting a lane to swim in Chiswick New Pool may become very challenging.

Felicity Caborn ● 63d21 Comments

The revenue account for Fountains isn't going to look that healthy. Memberships are already being given up as people look elsewhere and clubs based at the venue are desperately trying to find alternative premises in the knowledge that existing facilities could be lost at short notice. The bigger the hole in the finances gets, the quicker they will be to pull the plug.

Felicity Caborn ● 44d

What has been explained to me is that paying for maintenance or fixing the Fountains would come out of the revenue account where there is a £30million deficit whereas paying for consultants to tell us what we already know comes out of the capital account where there is spare cash.

Francis Rowe ● 48d

Anne - contact Councillor Gerald McGregor about the cash issue, he can go into the details of why what they re doing is illegal.

Anna Kirkpatrick ● 50d

Anne, I think the answer to your question is that nobody really knows but the council will probably keep it open until something major and expensive needs fixing without which the centre can't operate. This could happen before the end of the year or in 2026.

Andrew OSullivan ● 50d

I missed that, apologies. Wouldn't take long to reopen I guess, unless it closed due to lack if business, in which case, why bother.

N V Brooks ● 50d

I went to the Fountain this morning. Who knows how long it's got? One staff member reckons it will be a couple of years before it closes - I wish I could be so sure.

Anne England ● 50d

As Simon has mentioned, the climbing gym in Acton has shut. It has been gone for about two months.

Andrew OSullivan ● 50d

Ah - the usual 'a local Councillor'. Why is it illegal to not accept cash? I'd like to know. Did this 'local Councillor' explain? For the record, I am a pool user and think Council-run facilities should accept cash.

Anne England ● 51d

There is a climbing gym in Acton, would the market bear two?

N V Brooks ● 52d

Thanks for the update. I did have vouchers to go but never used them. Shame to see a business close but it didn't have a very visible presence in Acton. I think most people didn't know it was there. As a climbing gym at the new Brentford centre would be providing something that the market isn't providing — this would seem to be a good suggestion.

Andrew OSullivan ● 52d

Chiswick New Pool stopped accepting cash for admission to the pool and gym years ago - which is actually illegal a local Councillor informs me. There again -I suppose you cant expect any playing by the rulebook when it comes to Hounslow council.

Anna Kirkpatrick ● 53d

The Acton climbing gym closed down recently.There's one in Ravenscourt Park.But that's bouldering, not rope climbing.The Westway climbing centre is council owned, but privately run.

Simon Pedley ● 54d

There is also a commercial climbing centre operation on Acton High Street. It wouldn't be great news for them if a subsidised competitor opened nearby.

Andrew OSullivan ● 54d

Interesting idea. You'd like to thing that, with it becoming an Olympic sport, there would be pots of lottery money available to part fund it. However, are there any examples of council-run climbing facilities? It might be impractical due to issues of insurance and the need for highly trained staff.

Francis Rowe ● 55d

I'd vote for including a climbing gym in any new design.(not just bouldering, but rope climbing).

Simon Pedley ● 55d

A centre without a pool may be feasible. I may be being paranoid but the mention of 'Sport England' guidelines smelled to me of a set up for a spurious justification for swimming facilities not being necessary. When the consultation begins, users of Fountains should stress the need for a lane swimming pool (of a proper depth) and a leisure pool.

Felicity Caborn ● 55d

That's a good point. I'd add that there is a question of what the council does if the consultants' report comes back with the conclusion that the new centre can't be built without a significant contribution from the taxpayers of Hounslow. The council have said they won't do this but it simply may not be the case that it is possible to get a free leisure centre any more.

Francis Rowe ● 56d

What I don't understand is why the project to build a new leisure centre funding by housing wasn't simply put out to tender. This is really the only way to confirm feasibility and wouldn't cost a penny as opposed to the nearly a million quid that is being paid to consultants. Waiting for a consultation and this report just delays things further and makes it inevitable that some unforeseen problem will present a new bill to keep the centre operational which the council won't want to pay.

Andrew OSullivan ● 57d

Not sure it is a model for leisure centres but the recent Riverside Studios takeover might have some relevance for the Watermans. All the council would need to do is find another billionaire philanthropist. There are precedents for this — the Brentford Library was funded by Andrew Carnegie.

Mark Evans ● 60d

Ealing council has its problems with the Gurnell swimming pool as well. Mind you, with their poor record of closing leisure facilities (two bowling greens and a whole 9 hole golf course), we shouldn't be surprised

peter king ● 63d

"Getting a lane to swim in Chiswick New Pool may become very challenging".It already is.  With the new autumn programme, if you are not keen on swimming at 7am or late evening, there's not much available.

Liz Combes ● 63d