The steel frame for the new leisure and wellness centre on King James Road in Knaresborough is starting to take shape.

The centre, which is due to open at the end of next summer, will include a six-lane 25-metre pool, activity pool with flume, sauna and steam room, fitness suite and studio, spin studio, café, electric car charging points and cycle storage.

It is being built next to the current leisure centre, which will stay open until the new facility is ready.

Harrogate Borough Council, which is funding the project,  previously said this will be in July next year.

Once it opens, the existing pool will be demolished and replaced by a new play area, which is due to take a further 15 weeks.

The council has appointed Bristol-based firm Alliance Leisure to carry out construction work.

Councillor Stanley Lumley, the council’s cabinet member for culture, tourism and sport, said in a statement today:

“This new facility for Knaresborough will be a fantastic asset for the town and shows our commitment to investing in leisure provision across the district.”

Councillors Stanley Lumley (left) and Phil Ireland

Councillor Phil Ireland, cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability and borough councillor for the Knaresborough Aspin and Calcutt ward, said the centre would be “a brilliant addition for the town of Knaresborough”, adding:

“What is also so important is the fact it will be built to BREEAM standard of ‘Excellent’, ensuring that is as energy-efficient as possible to help us achieve our net-zero emissions target.”

The BREEAM standard is based on an assessment of the building’s sustainability and energy performance.

Councillors Phil Ireland and Stanley Lumley with project manager Julian Donnelly.

Civic society view

The centre will be powered by air source heat pumps and solar panels to reduce the carbon footprint.

Andy Grinter, secretary of Knaresborough Civic Society, said it was pleased the centre was not going to be run on gas.

Speaking after a recent civic society visit to the site, Mr Grinter said it was also heartened to hear the council planned to appoint local caterers.

He aded:

“We were disappointed by some aspects of the planning process; in particular the lack of interaction by Harrogate council officers, who appear to have taken decisions without any consultation with residents eg the design of the new play area, which has it seems already been designed, bought and paid for.”

He said senior manager “gave us reassurances that it is on time and on budget” but the society was surprised to discover the centre is only expected to have a shelf life of 25 to 30 years.

Mr Grinter also said the society remained unconvinced there was a need for a new centre and was disappointed by the modern design, close to Knaresborough conservation area. He said:

“I don’t think we will ever be happy about the look of it.”

Main photo shows Councillors Stanley Lumley and Phil Ireland, Alliance Leisure business development manager Sean Nolan and ISG project manager Julian Donnelly.

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Two construction contracts worth a total of £28m are to be handed to a Bristol-based firm to build a new leisure centre in Knaresborough and refurbish Harrogate Hydro.

Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet agreed this week to the deals with Alliance Leisure ahead of the works starting next month.

Jonathan Dunk, executive officer for major projects at the council, said the company had been chosen because it has “the right experience and expertise to ensure we deliver good value for money”.

The decision comes after Alliance Leisure was previously awarded a £2m contract to draw up plans for both schemes in 2020.

A planning application for the £17m Knaresborough Leisure Centre was approved on Monday. The plans include building the new facility over at play at Fysche Field before the existing Knaresborough Pool is demolished.

The new leisure centre could be built by July 2023 and will have a six-lane pool, health spa, fitness studios and replacement play area.

The £11.8m Harrogate Hydro plans were approved in October 2021 and include a two-storey extension of the building, as well as a new entrance, cafe and reception area.

There will also be a new diving board structure, fitness suite and refurbished changing areas.

These works could be completed by April 2023.

Councillor Stanley Lumley, cabinet member for culture, tourism and sport, told the cabinet meeting that the council was committed to both projects despite rising costs.

He said:

“Keeping people fit and active as long as possible has to benefit everyone with both physical and mental health.

“These new facilities will be far more efficient and this investment keeps us competitive.

“We live in a new world post-Covid and increasing costs, materials and labour shouldn’t stop us in our ambitions.”

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Cllr Lumley also said he was pleased to see the completion of Ripon’s new multi-million-pound swimming pool which officially opens today after months of costly delays.

The project is nine months overdue and £4m over budget, and refurbishment works on the adjoining Ripon Leisure Centre are still underway after the discovery of an underground void prompted the need for an investigation.

The new facility has been named the Jack Laugher Leisure and Wellness Centre in honour of the city’s triple Olympic medal winner who was born in Harrogate and went to Ripon Grammar School.

Cllr Lumley said:

“Yesterday I spent a very proud morning in Ripon at the new leisure and wellness centre with local lad and Olympic hero Jack Laugher.

“I was privileged to show Jack around the new multi-million pound facility and he was delighted with what he saw.

“He was also extremely pleased that his name appeared above the door.”

Harrogate Borough Council looks set to award two contracts worth a total of £28 million to a Bristol company to build a new leisure centre in Knaresborough and refurbish Harrogate Hydro.

Senior councillors will be recommended next week to directly appoint Alliance Leisure to construct the projects as part of its leisure strategy and to proceed with construction work.

The Hydro contract is worth £11 million; the Knaresborough scheme is valued at £17 million.

A council report said its selection procedure would avoid “the traditional more time-consuming procurement process for public organisations”.

It added that process is “fully compliant” with the UK Leisure Framework, which allows for the direct appointment of a partner (Alliance Leisure) for scoping, design, refurbishment, construction and development of leisure centres. The framework is available to UK public sector organisations.

Alliance Leisure was awarded a £2 million contract by the council to draw up plans for both schemes in November 2020.

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Major changes

The council, which will be abolished next year, is to build a two-storey extension on the Hydro and construct a new leisure centre, which includes a six-lane pool and exercise studio, at Knaresborough.

A report due before the council’s cabinet on Wednesday said the Knaresborough centre has the potential to be “entirely self-financing”.

It said:

“The 2019 review into the delivery of sport and leisure highlighted the opportunity to invest in the facilities which deliver for residents and visitors of the east of district/Knaresborough.

“The initial development of the scheme indicates that it has the potential to be entirely self-financing or that it could provide additional revenue cost reductions with the allocation of council capital, capital receipts from disposals or external grant.”

Designs for Knaresborough Leisure Centre.

Councillors on the planning committee will be recommended to approve plans for the leisure centre on Monday after a decision on the scheme was delayed last week when a “technical error” meant residents were not invited to speak at the meeting.

The cabinet will then discuss the proposal to award the contracts at a meeting on Wednesday.

Harrogate Borough Council awarded a Somerset company a contract worth £2 million to develop plans to build a new Knaresborough leisure centre and refurbish Harrogate Hydro.

Alliance Leisure was formally chosen for the contract in November last year and appointed development manager for the £26 million projects.

The Stray Ferret asked the authority the value of the contract, which was awarded without competitive tender, but did not receive a response.

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Now, details on a local authority contract register have revealed that the contract is worth £2,107,161 and will last for 11 months.

The value is broken down into £873,783.50 for the Harrogate Hydro and £1,233,377.50 for the new Knaresborough leisure centre site.

Jim Anderson, who runs Ripon recycling firm K A Anderson, told the Stray Ferret in November he was “utterly dismayed” that the authority had given the contract to the Somerset firm.

He said:

“You see plenty of business struggling in Harrogate now.

“I just think there are lots of good local firms that could do the work. I think whatever the work, it should be given to them especially now.”

Council bosses plan to build the new Knaresborough centre on the existing leisure centre site.

The authority has started to draw up designs for the new facility after a consultation revealed that 80% of respondents supported the site.

But residents criticised the consultation and have since launched a campaign to save a local playing field next to the development from being built on.

Harrogate Borough Council is set to award two decarbonisation contracts worth £2.4 million to companies outside the district and without open tender.

The projects aim to cut carbon emissions at the Harrogate Hydro leisure centre and Harrogate Convention Centre.

Funding for the schemes was secured from the government’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme.

Reports to senior councillors recommend awarding the contracts to Alliance Leisure, based in Somerset, and Engie Regeneration Ltd, which has registered offices in Newcastle.

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Projects to cut carbon emissions

Harrogate Hydro, which opened in 1999, will replace its gas boilers with air source heat pumps, install solar panels on the roof and put in place new energy monitoring and control system.

The £1.8 million contract for the works is recommended by council officers to be handed to Alliance Leisure, which was also hired as development managers for the council’s wider £26 million leisure investment.

A council report said the appointment was made in line with the UK Leisure Framework, which is a framework developed in accordance with EU procurement regulations that enables public sector organisations to directly appoint Alliance Leisure for leisure centre projects.

The report says the direct appointment of the company is “fully compliant” with procurement rules and provides “a faster and more efficient procurement route”.

Meanwhile, the HCC received £583,914 to convert its lighting to LEDs, install solar panels and heat pumps and introduce variable speed drives to control the fans and pipework insulation.

Engie Regeneration Ltd, which is part of Engie Group and specialises in refurbishment of public buildings, is set to be awarded the contract for the works.

A £500,000 project is planned to decarbonise Harrogate Convention Centre.

Council officers said in a report that Engie had already gone through a competitive tender process within the procurement framework it has used.

It added that the direct award would mean the council could deliver the scheme “within the tight timescales set out in the grant conditions”.

Both schemes form part of the borough council’s goal to reach a net-zero carbon economy by 2038.

The authority hopes the improvements will cut emissions by 577 tonnes a year at the Hydro and 70 tonnes at the convention centre.

No open tender process

The contracts are to be the latest to be awarded without an open competitive tender process.

The council has been criticised previously for not working with local firms, including when it appointed Ipswich firm Jacob Bailey last year to redevelop its tourism website Visit Harrogate without a competitive tender process.

Other contracts awarded without tender include:

• A £1.1m contract to Dutch firm Arcadis to design the first phase of the £47 million redevelopment of Harrogate Convention Centre
• A £40,926.29 to Glendale Services, based in Lancashire, to restore the West Park Stray following the UCI World Cycling Championships.
• Alliance Leisure being appointed development manager for £26 million investment in leisure services, including a new facility in Knaresborough.

In cabinet papers due before councillors next week, council officers said a full tendering process could take up to six months.

It added that the grant conditions for the decarbonisation projects state that the programmes must be completed by September 2021.

The report said:

“To run a full open tendering procurement process would not allow us to meet the tight grant condition timescales, and the council could potentially lose the funding and or be obliged to repay the grant funding in part or in full.”

Senior councillors on the council’s cabinet will make a decision on the contracts on March 31.

Harrogate Borough Council has appointed Somerset company Alliance Leisure to develop plans to refurbish Harrogate Hydro and build a new leisure centre in Knaresborough.

The council formally chose Alliance Leisure yesterday as development manager for the £26 million projects.

The company was appointed directly, without a competitive tender process.

A council report said its selection procedure complied with EU procurement regulations and would “avoid the traditional more time-consuming procurement process for public organisations”.

Alliance Leisure will be tasked with progressing both schemes until they are ready to be constructed. From there, it will also be able to bid for the construction contract for the projects.

The council borrowed £1.7 million for design and business cases for the scheme.

It is not known if this is the precise sum being paid to Alliance Services.

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Hambleton District Council also hired Alliance Services to help build Northallerton Leisure Centre.

Cllr Stan Lumley, cabinet member for leisure, tourism and sport, approved the appointment.

The Stray Ferret asked the council why Alliance was chosen, why it was appointed without competitive tender and how long the process would take to get to construction. However, we had not received a response by the time of publication.

On Wednesday, the council announced that its preferred site for the new leisure centre in Knaresborough was the existing site on King James Road.

The existing swimming pool site in Knaresborough.

Residents had previously raised concern that the Grade II listed Conyngham Hall could have been chosen for the project.

A Hands Off Conyngham Hall Grounds petition by the Harrogate and Knaresborough Liberal Democrats attracted more than 1,600 signatures.

But that option now seems to be off the table.

Ian Clark, Knaresborough Civic Society’s secretary, welcomed the decision. He told the Stray Ferret:

“This is good news for many people in Knaresborough. Conyngham Hall was not a suitable option for a leisure centre.

“It would not have done the historic building any favours if they built a new site right next to it and replaced park land with a car park.”