Southampton Sports Centre: Pledge to deliver 'overall scope' of plan

The city council has sent an upbeat message to fans of the facility after escalating costs caused it to scrap some of the proposed improvements.

An application to upgrade almost every part of the 96-year-old facility was given planning permission by the authority in August last year.

But a recent meeting of the ruling cabinet heard the cost of the scheme had risen since consent was granted.

The latest design for the proposed new snow sports complex at Southampton Sports Centre (Image: Southampton City Council)

Under the changes, the proposed new community hub will lose health and wellbeing rooms, plus a function room on the first floor. The indoor tennis hall will be reduced from three courts to two.

READ MORE: Work on transformation of Southampton Sports Centre due to start next year after plans approved

The proposed new ski lodge will now be a single-storey building following the decision to delete two party rooms and a storage area.

Other changes mean the new athletics building will be reduced in size and the grandstand will no longer include a box for officials.

The latest design for the new-look athletics area at Southampton Sports Centre (Image: Southampton City Council)

A council spokesperson said: "Despite a very challenging construction climate where prices have risen considerably over the last few years, we are pleased we can still deliver the overall scope of the original proposals.

"The project has still been able to successfully progress to this point as a result of the robust cost management and value engineering."

The scheme is being financed by the government's levelling up fund, the Football Foundation, British Cycling, and the council.

"The council remains committed to delivering this project at pace for users and residents to visit and enjoy for many years to come," said the spokesperson.

"The improvements to the centre will increase leisure opportunities for communities across the city and will help increase their level of physical activity and reduce health inequalities."

A report to cabinet members said the cost hike was due to "market fluctuations" in the construction industry.

It added: "There have been additional items as part of the planning process which were not envisaged at the time of costing."

READ MORE: Plan to give Southampton Sports Centre a £30m upgrade takes big step forward

The report admitted that the new design differed from the scheme given planning permission, but said the changes "do not diverge significantly" from the original masterplan.

Cllr Jeremy Moulton, deputy leader of the Conservative opposition group, said: "It's disappointing to see the council scaling back some of sports centre upgrades.

"Some of the changes are about better value for money but others represent a reduction in the offer - for example, reducing the size of buildings and the number of covered courts."