Basingstoke Leisure Park
The opportunity
Basingstoke Leisure Park is a well-loved facility enjoyed by many residents and their families including visitors from a wider area. But it needs to be updated and improved.
The facilities at the park were mostly developed in the 1980s and 1990s and are now in need of investment to meet the needs of the borough’s community and reflect changing trends and demand in leisure.
As owner of the leisure park, Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council is developing long-term plans to give it a more sustainable future and looking at what facilities a modernised Aquadrome, as the council-owned facility on the park, could provide.
The council is considering the most appropriate and viable options to provide facilities for residents and visitors and improve the environment and accessibility of the leisure park.
Although the leisure park itself belongs to the borough council, most of the buildings there are owned on long leases by the operators or their landlords. They will have an opportunity to input their own ideas for investing in new or improved facilities.
The large amount of unused land at the park makes possible the introduction of new leisure facilities and alternative uses, such as employment or even homes.
The redevelopment plans need to look at how the future leisure park would work together with the emerging plans for Basingstoke town centre, that could see an increased leisure offer there, and other proposals to link up leisure facilities, open spaces and heritage attractions in the area.
Masterplan vision
The borough council has appointed a range of experts to produce an initial master plan – which will be developed further through this consultation process. It is also consulting with the leisure park’s existing operators and leaseholders to understand their vision for the future of their facilities, as well as looking at how further developments could sit alongside the leisure park.
Multidisciplinary architecture and urban design practice BDP has developed a number of master plan principles to help shape the emerging plans and explore what is possible to improve the leisure park.
The redevelopment of Basingstoke Leisure Park will follow national and local guidelines to ensure the highest design quality. The new site will strive to be well-connected, sustainable, accessible, safe and easy to navigate and respond to changing trends in leisure.
The Aquadrome
The Aquadrome has been a popular facility for many years and the council is considering a range of options for its modernisation.
The council is considering replacing or upgrading it, and how this can be funded, so it remains a popular facility for future generations to enjoy.
Options for an improved Aquadrome have been drawn up by sports and leisure sector experts FMG, looking at what was likely to be most successful after exploring current usage, gaps in what is provided in the area and wider trends.
Proposals for an improved Aquadrome will take into consideration the council’s wider ambitions for Basingstoke Leisure Park and be complementary to its future uses. A renewed Aquadrome represents a significant investment in the borough’s leisure and the health and wellbeing of local people at a time when many other councils are cutting back on their leisure investment.
Delivery
To help ensure the leisure park has an exciting and sustainable future, the council is looking for private sector partners to take up development opportunities to improve what it offers.
Local authority: Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council
Contact us below:
Andrew Lubman
Senior Regeneration and Development Officer
Hampshire County Council
