Extension approved for Pitsea swimming pool
A new technical building is to be built to allow the pool to function
Last updated 21st Jul 2022
A ‘much-needed’ new swimming pool in an Essex town has been granted permission for an external extension which will allow it to function.
Planners came back to Basildon Borough Council’s planning committee last night (July 19) seeking permission for an external plant area in Eversley Leisure Centre in Pitsea, which will control the internal temperature of the pool and changing facilities.
The proposed extension is in the green belt, but both it and the main swimming pool have been deemed to meet the special circumstances required to be approved.
An expansion to Eversley Leisure Centre to accommodate the new 25 metre, four lane swimming pool, was unanimously approved by the committee in March.
Councillor Craig Rimmer (Con, Pitsea South-East) said the new plant area would make sure the swimming pool is “absolutely operational”.
He said: “It’s important to get these things fixed and sorted and to make it as future-proof as possible.
“I’ll be voting for it because this is an amenity that’s much needed in Pitsea and one that I can’t wait to utilise.”
According to a council report, the site is owned by Basildon Borough Council and the existing building is leased to Everyone Active.
The technical extension, which will contain a series of air-handling units to control the internal environment of the pool and changing rooms, will measure eight-by-six metres and will be surrounded by three metre-high fencing.
At a previous meeting, the council’s head of culture and health Grant Taylor said the pool would predominantly serve Pistea South-East, Pitsea North-West and Vange, which have the highest levels of health deprivation in the borough.
The old swimming pool in Pitsea was demolished in 2012 to make way for a Morrisons supermarket, which pulled out of the project soon after.
The original expansion to Eversley Leisure Centre approved in March included new changing facilities and more car parking spaces, in addition to the pool itself.
According to an earlier report, the facilities will be fully wheelchair accessible, with level access between the changing rooms and the pool.