Plans for new leisure centre and pool revealed
A community group's revealed it's proposals for a leisure centre in Falmouth
The community group behind the running of the former Ships and Castles leisure centre in Falmouth has revealed new plans for the attraction, which would be known as Kresen Penn Dinas, or Pendennis Centre, if approved.
Pendennis Leisure Future Focus is the name given to the project to re-imagine the long term use of the former Ships and Castles centre, at Pendennis Point, as a multi-purpose community hub and healthy living centre.
The leisure centre was closed in 2022 by Cornwall Council after the previous operator GLL said it could no longer afford to run it and the council’s cabinet added there were not enough funds to keep it open.
The existing building, currently known as Pendennis Community Centre, re-opened seven months ago providing limited fitness classes via a gym space and studio room in the upper ground floor only. The former wave pool hall is no longer in use.
The Pendennis Leisure charity is seeking advice from Cornwall Council before submitting a full application to refurbish and extend the building to provide a 25m six-lane competition swimming pool, conference and training facility for up to 150 people, a 50-station gym, two fitness studios and a wellness spa centre.
Images of how the new Kresen Penn Dinas / Pendennis Centre could look, by Awen Design architects, have accompanied the pre-application. The original building was completed just over 30 years ago.
A planning statement reads: “As well as being desirable by the local community, these facilities increase the financial viability of the centre over and above a stand-alone pool complex in the pursuit of an economically sustainable development.”
The Future Focus concept would include a two-storey extension to form a new entrance, gallery space, café and staff facilities, with reconfiguration of vehicle access, the pedestrian footpath and landscaping to the area in front of the current entrance.
Other facilities would include a teaching pool, equipment storage and changing facilities at the lower ground level, soft play, crèche and spectator gallery for visitors at upper ground level, dry sport changing facilities, break-out rooms and community meeting spaces to support the main conference room, together with catering facilities and toilets.
The proposals have so far been presented to meetings of Falmouth Town Council, the town’s Civic Society and at a Pendennis Leisure community meeting last week.