New swimming pools and sports hall as part of major Dudley leisure centres revamp

The borough’s three centres will feature state-of-the-art facilities following major investment.

Details of the plans, which will see a new leisure centre built on Flood Street, Dudley, to replace the current building on Wellington Road, and sites at Stourbridge and Halesowen refurbished, have emerged.

The centres in Dudley and Halesowen would both be fitted with 25-metre pools, while the Dudley centre will have a five-court sports hall and 100-station gym.

Bosses have now confirmed the new Dudley leisure centre, hailed by council chiefs as a facility ‘fit for the 21st century’, will be built on the Flood Street car park as part of plans to regenerate that part of the town.

Bulldozed

The Wellington Road facility would be bulldozed and the site sold off for development. Under current plans, the new Dudley centre will include a 25-metre, eight-lane pool and smaller learning pool.

There will also be a five-court sports hall, a gym, two studios, a viewing area and cafe.

Existing centres in Stourbridge and Halesowen, which have become run-down and dated, will undergo major overhauls. The pool at Stourbridge will be refurbished and there will be new changing rooms.

At Halesowen, the existing 33-yard pool will be converted into a 25-metre, eight-lane pool. The gym will also be extended.

Regeneration boss Councillor Ian Kettle said: “We are delighted with the upgrade of our facilities, which will meet the public’s aspiration and needs.

“We have made great progress and things are looking good for the future.

“These facilities are part of our healthy vision for the borough as we do need to get more people active.”

Work on the Dudley and Stoubridge centres is expected to start in April 2019 and Halesowen a year later. It marks a huge change from a year ago when a leisure centre in either Stourbridge or Halesowen was set to be axed to save money, under plans by the previous Labour administration at Dudley Council.