A last roll of the dice for Save Oasis Swindon to save the sports hall
The future of the Oasis Leisure Centre is still unwritten
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Last ditch plan to save the Oasis Sports Hall by nominating it as an asset of community value
Save Oasis Swindon has been busy over the last couple of months ensuring that as many people as possible put in their objections to the plans for The Oasis Leisure Centre. For them the main issue with the plans is that they don’t include a sports hall and it will see the existing sports hall facility demolished. They have now put in a formal application to get the sports hall nominated as an asset of community value.
By Jamie Hill
On several occasions now we have asked Neil Robinson of Save Oasis Swindon to write a piece for us about The Oasis and his organisation’s objections to the plans that are being submitted.
Unfortunately we have had no luck so far but Neil, if you are reading this, you are always welcome, especially in light of pieces we have written in the past that don’t tally with what your campaign group is trying to achieve.
The consultation period for the plans, put forward by SevenCapital, for the reopening of the leisure centre closed last week and we now have to wait to see what, if any, effect the objections will have on the planning process.
There have been several high profile objections to the plans including from Save Oasis Swindon themselves, Sport England and the Wilts and Berks Canal Trust.
And in the last few days it has been revealed that Save Oasis Swindon have put in an application to Swindon Borough Council to nominate the Sports Hall as an Asset of Community Value. Planning permission for the Oasis Hall demolition can be refused if the Asset of Community Value application is approved.
The council has said that they will have eight weeks from 25 March to make a judgement as to whether the Asset of Community Value application is successful.
It was in November 2020 that it was announced that the Oasis Leisure Centre would not be reopening after its enforced covid shutdown.
Since then plans have come and gone and even council administrations have come and gone - as campaigners fought for the iconic leisure centre to be reopened.
At the time operators GLL said that the site was no longer viable unless there was serious investment.
How times have changed, as it is GLL once again who are the frontrunners to operate the site once it is up and running, probably around 2027 at this rate.
In December SevenCapital, the leaseholders of the site, finally submitted plans for its reopening.
Since then we’ve had a period of consultation on the plans, which closed last week, and the local authority has said that it will go before the planning committee in the Spring.
But what are the plans?
- The proposals include a detailed plan to restore and re-open the Swindon Oasis, including the building’s iconic dome and wave pool
- Wider proposals include outline plans for up to 707 new homes and employment space
- Refurbishment of the Swindon Oasis will be the first phase of delivery
The proposals include a detailed application that will revive the much-loved former leisure destination by restoring the iconic dome structure and delivering a modern wave machine, state-of-the-art aqua play, and teaching lane pool.
Domebusters slides will be replaced with a new intertube slide complex, representing an upgrade to the previous slides.
Plans include a new bowling alley, indoor golf, state-of-the-art gym, and café spaces, with new outdoor all-weather pitches, known as Multi Use Games Areas, replacing the sports hall, which according SevenCapital after significant consultation with leisure operators is not deemed sufficiently economical to rebuild.
If approved, the refurbishment of the Oasis will commence as the first phase of work.
Meanwhile, as part of a mixed-use masterplan, outline plans have also been submitted to deliver up to 707 new homes, public realm, and other amenities as part of a new neighbourhood with the Oasis at its heart.
Outline plans for two new commercial ‘warehouses’, which could support up to 630 new jobs, have also been submitted.
Both outline submissions for the homes and commercial elements remain at an early stage in the planning process and are currently indicative. Should they be approved, extensive work will then begin to agree on the most appropriate configuration, with further consultation to be carried out ahead of drawing up detailed plans.
Save Oasis Swindon’s official objection to the plans states: “We are writing to object with regards to the proposed Oasis Leisure Centre development. Significant changes will need to be made to the applications in order for them to be deemed acceptable.
“We would like to start by reminding your Planning Committee, that the Oasis Leisure Centre was built for the people of Swindon, by Swindon taxpayers as a whole sporting complex, offering a wide variety of sport and recreational activities across a large site. The Oasis does not just compromise (sic) of a pool, it needs substantial extra activities. In particularly (sic) a ‘dry side’ indoor Multi-Purpose Hall, in order to remain viable and cater for the needs of our town. Our population in 1976 when the Oasis opened was under 100,000. Now in 2024 it is over 234,000 people. Our population has more than doubled in size, yet these plans propose to significantly reduce the Oasis Leisure Centre buildings and site down in size , in order to cater for high rise apartments and warehouses.
“The proposed plans need to be altered so that a Sports Hall can be included, so that they cater for what residents and future customers ultimately demand and need from the site. The Save Oasis Swindon (SOS) Campaign has over 6,000 supporters across social media. This is prime leisure land that must be retained for the people of Swindon.
“High-rise developments in its vicinity would detract from the visual and historical integrity of the area, undermining the Oasis status as a Grade II listed building. The proposed flats should be built on the former Claire’s site instead, and the warehouse plans rejected. This would mean that the open spaces around the leisure centre would be protected, and the leisure centre left with the option of including a rebuilt sports hall, with room for further expansion.”
Sport England say the application fails to consider the latest guidance from the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), which states sports facilities, playing fields and buildings should not be built on unless they have been shown to be surplus to requirements, or will be replaced by equal or better provision.
The objection letter states: "Sport England objects to this application, as it is not considered to meet the objective of keeping sports facilities open.
"There is lack of justification for the loss of the squash and sports hall.
"Sport England will reconsider its position if the applicants can provide robust justification for the loss of the sports provision or replace it either wholly off site, or partially on-site or partially off site."
For the Wilts and Berks Canal Trust their main objection to the plans is that in their current state it will close off plans for the restoration of the canal.
The objection states: "Plans currently submitted for the redevelopment of the Oasis site ignore the need for the reserved route of the Wilts & Berks Canal to be of sufficient width.
“Permitting this development as proposed would preclude the canal's restoration for several generations, thereby denying the residents of Swindon the proven environmental, economic and health advantages a restored canal would bring to the Town.
“I urge the Planning Committee to reject these applications until modified to permit the eventual rebuilding of the canal through this area.”
As always the planning process is complex and it will be a couple of months yet before the plans go before the planning committee.
There is still hope that the plans might be revised to assuage some of the objections. You would think that an easy win for the developers would definitely be modifying the plans slightly to solve the canal objection.
It is also hoped that the developers might rethink their plans not to include a multi-use sports hall.
One worrying aspect is that we’ve already seen quite ambitious plans be put aside after the dome was listed a couple of years ago, so to now make things even more difficult for the developers by the sports hall becoming an asset of community value could end up jeopardising the entire project.
The last thing we want is for the developers to walk away altogether because the financial viability of the site has been made too restrictive.
For Save Oasis Swindon the idea is to apply more pressure on SevenCapital to keep the sports hall, but there is a real danger that Swindon could be left with absolutely nothing because of this gambit.
Fingers crossed that sense prevails and we end up with a restored leisure centre as well as a sports hall.
But it would still be a massive victory and a huge boon to Swindon if at the very least we have the reopening of the leisure centre even without the sports hall.
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Making a Scene
A Spotlight on... Swinterfest
By Dave Franklin of Dancing About Architecture
They say that good things come in threes. That is undoubtedly the case as a new grassroots original music festival joins The Swindon Shuffle and My Dad's Bigger Than Your Dad festival as high points in the musical calendar.
Again, all profits will be donated to The Prospect Hospice, an essential and woefully underfunded end-of-life care organisation catering to Swindon and North Wiltshire. And again, it promises to be a weekend chock full of great music.
Consider it a mini-Shuffle, with the added advantage that with Swinterfest, there is only one venue operating each day between Thursday, 30 January and Sunday, 2 February, meaning that you don't have to make those tricky decisions of missing one band so that you can watch another. As Aerosmith almost said via a song that sits at their sonic nadir, You don't have to miss a thing.
Again, like the Shuffle, there is only room to write about a fraction of the bands (although pay me by the word, and I would happily indulge), so here are a few sonic serving suggestions.
The Hop starts Thursday, and George Wilding is firing the opening salvo. You can spot him easily as his sartorial elegance resembles how you imagine Nick Drake's drug dealer might have looked. Musically, this is glorious singer-songwriter territory, often written from the point of view of the underdog, the man in the street, you and me. But when you listen and relate to his songs, you are not a loser, you are a character in an epic poem….about losers. At the other end of the evening, you will find Courting Ghosts and their marvellous and mellifluous blend of folk and rock, indie and Americana.
Friday sees The Victoria doing what they do best - hosting the biggest and most awe-inspiring rock and roll show known to man. Warriors and Adders are not new names for me, so get down early and support the next wave of bands coming through. I See Orange were the highlight of last year's My Dad's Bigger Than Your Dad festival for me, and their blend of post-rock/grunge is something you need in your life. The night's headliners are the long-established local legends, All Ears Avow, and if anyone is writing better songs or putting on better shows, then I want them shot, stuffed and mounted on the wall of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Things move to The Castle on Saturday for a bill that wears the eclectic badge with pride. Wild Isles is a must-watch, a heady blend of slick rock and melodic sophistication, as are Stay Lunar, music that takes threads of 80's synth-pop inspiration and weaves it through poised, of-the-moment indie. Also on the bill is musical maverick James Moss, and that means anything could happen, but whatever it is, you should be there for it.
The Beehive has the final say, and Sunday will be anything but a day of rest; instead, a day of groove and grit, melodic magnificence, new musical discoveries and a meeting up with old friends. Singer-songwriters Plummie Racket and Shedric get things moving and make sure you are still there for Joe Kelly and the Royal Pharmacy. From there, you will witness an inspired sonic tryptic to take the festival home - Concrete Prairie's blend of folk and Americana, SN Dubstation's rock-reggae party and Subject A's sparkling blends of ambient ska and cinematic grooves.
A sonic summer of love right in the heart of this winter of disco tents...I mean discontent, and somewhere in there is your new favourite band. (If your current favourite band didn't get a mention, it was because the editor cut them due to word count considerations.)
Send any review submissions in physical form to:
Dave Franklin, Dancing About Architecture, 21 Portsmouth Street, Swindon, SN1 2LF
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