help us improve the sobell leisure centre -...

www.islington.gov.uk

Help us improve the Sobell Leisure CentreWe need to know your views on our plans to improve the Sobell by 30 June 2008

Ten lucky people will

win £50 of gift vouchers by

completing this survey

Have your say on the Sobell Leisure CentreIslington Council wants to hear your views on our ideas to improve the Sobell Leisure Centre and surrounding site, including Kinloch Park. Among the benefits we would like to deliver for all the community are:

• improved sports and leisure facilities• additional community facilities• more greenspace • new housing.

It doesn’t matter if you use the centre or not at the moment, we still want to know about the kinds of facilities and services that interest you and how you feel we can improve the centre. The redevelopment of Sobell will form an important part of Islington’s 2012 Olympic legacy, and what you tell us will help us make this exciting project happen.

Once you’ve had a look at this brochure, please fill in the questionnaire. We welcome your views and look forward to reading your responses.

Tell us what you think by completing the questionnaire in the centre of this brochure and returning it to us by Monday 30 June.

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Ten lucky people will

win £50 of gift vouchers by

completing this survey

About the Sobell

Current facilities at Sobell

• Multi-purpose sports hall, the size of 16 badminton courts

• Gym• Youth gym• Four exercise studios• Ice rink 40 x 20m• Six squash courts

• Sobell Safari children’s soft play area• Climbing walls• Sauna and sunbeds• Therapy rooms• Two meeting rooms for public hire• Martial arts space (Dojo)

The Sobell Leisure Centre was opened in 1973 and was funded by contributions from the Michael Sobell Trust, the Variety Club of Great Britain and Islington Council.

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At the time of opening it was one of the largestsports facilities in the country and part of a regional network of ‘super’ leisure centres. As a result it has hosted some major sports competitions, as well as various non-sports events such as exhibitions, pop concerts, dog shows and weddings.

The centre has almost half a million visitors a year. It is used by many of our schools, hosts a number of sports clubs and provides a sports facility for local people. It is also used to count the votes at election time and is an emergency evacuation centre.

Over its lifetime the Sobell Centre has had several minor refurbishments to try and keep pace with changing customer expectations. However, it remains largely as it was in 1973 and is now seriously deteriorating.

The building and surrounding area could be made much more attractive.

The space around the building is under-used and unattractive.

The internal layout of the building is outdated with wasted space.

The quality of the sports facilities including the ice rink has fallen behind other leisure centres.

Problems with the current building:• The quality of the sports facilities has fallen

behind other leisure centres • The building and surrounding area could be

made much more attractive• The internal layout of the building is outdated with

lots of wasted space• The cooling system for the ice-rink needs replacing • The sports hall roof and floor need replacing• The building is environmentally unfriendly, inefficient

and is costly to operate

• The wider site, including Kinloch Park, is unattractive and difficult to access

• The accessibility of the building for disabled people, while adequate, falls short of modern design standards

• The heating, lighting and ventilation systems all need replacing.

As a consequence of these major issues, long term solutions are required to meet future leisure needs.

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Challenges facing the Sobell

More greenspace and better access to Kinloch ParkAll of the options presented in this brochure provide more greenspace than is currently on offer on the Sobell site. The existing Sobell Centre has an outdated layout, which does not make the best use of the space available. By building a new, modern leisure centre and by reducing the size of the car park, we will be able to accommodate more sports, leisure, community facilities and housing, while at the same time increasing and improving the amount of greenspace available around the centre. The project would also allow us to open up access and make improvements to the neighbouring Kinloch Park.

We also plan to use the consultation to open up discussions with Transport for London about jointly improving access and road safety by improving the road layout in the wider area and one-way system around the centre.

A vision for a new and improved Sobell Leisure Centre

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Redeveloping the Sobell gives us a unique opportunity to secure the future of the centre and to make an important contribution to Islington’s 2012 Olympic legacy.

Modern leisure and community facilitiesWe would like the Sobell site to play a central role in the health and wellbeing of the local community. This project will enable us to improve and modernise the sports and leisure facilities such as the ice rink, sports hall and gym and has the potential to include a brand new swimming pool and teaching pool. We would also like to include new social and community facilities, such as a youth club, a Police Safer Neighbourhoods Team base, healthcare facilities or a café, to make Sobell a real centre for the local community.

A new centre could provide:

• A swimming pool• An ice rink• A sports hall• A gym• Studio facilities• Outdoor sports pitches• Squash courts• Martial arts space• Climbing wall• Sports therapy and treatment rooms• Children’s soft play area• Sauna and spa facilities• Crêche/ nursery• Housing / advice services• Function/ conference / community rooms for hire• Gym for young people• Café• A base for local sports clubs• Football school • Healthcare facilities• A base for a Police Safer Neighbourhoods Team.

This consultation is your chance to tell us what mix of facilities you would like to see. There is also space in the questionnaire to suggest alternative ideas.

A more efficient and environmentallyfriendly buildingA new building design will enable us to use more efficient heating and lighting systems. We will also have the opportunity to use other environmentally friendly materials and features too.

Local homes for local peopleA site of this size presents a major opportunity to tackle the housing shortage in Islington. Housing development on the site would also help pay for the project.

The more housing we allow, the more scope there is to pay for new leisure and community facilities. To accommodate the needs of Islington residents, any new housing we build would be a mix of private and social housing, and of flats and town houses. As part of this consultation you can tell us how much housing you think is acceptable.

In developing our ideas for a long term solution for the centre, we’ve taken in to consideration four important factors:

1. Creating a large, state-of-the-art centre, with an excellent range of sports, leisure and community facilities

2. Improving and expanding the amount of greenspace around the centre

3. Tackling housing shortages by building new homes for local people on the site of the leisure centre that will contribute to the costs of the project

4. We have made an effort to reduce the impact of the development on existing trees by being careful with the location of the new buildings, as we know these are an important issue for local people. Where removing trees is unavoidable we would seek to replant three new trees in the area for every lost tree.

None of the options shown are set in stone. You may like parts of several options. That’s fine and the questionnaire allows for this. We will use this information to come up with a design which addresses as many of the community concerns raised as possible.

The options

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An aerial image of the existing site. The leisure centre building is low rise and spread over a wide area – an inefficient use of space. The car park is also spread over a large area, reducing greenspace and blocking access to the neighbouring Kinloch Park.

The images on the following pages are concept sketches to give you an impression of how the area might look. The finished buildings will not look like these and a final decision will be based on what you tell us in this and future consultations.

The current Sobell Leisure Centre layout

Isledon Road

Hornsey Road

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Option one

Points to consider:• Smallest leisure centre of all options, so less capacity

for extending sports, leisure and community facilities• Lower quantity of housing development than for other

options, comprising a mix of flats and town houses for families

• Fewer new homes and also less additional funding for leisure and community facilities

• Lower building heights• More greenspace gained than for options three and

four, and similar to option two• More trees requiring replacement than options two

and three and similar to option four.

Smaller leisure centre than other options. More greenspace gained than for options three and four and similar to option two. Easier access to Kinloch Park.

Isledon Road

Access to car park here – subject to further study on transport impacts and layouts.

Lower rise housing development spread over three locations.

Hornsey Road

Townhouse development.

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Option two

More greenspace than for options three and four and similar to option one. Easier access to Kinloch Park.

Bigger leisure centre than option one.

Points to consider:• Bigger leisure centre than for option one and so

more capacity for extending sports, leisure and community facilities

• Higher rise housing development than for option one, across two locations, comprising a mix of flats and town houses for families

• More new homes and more additional funding for leisure and community facilities than for option one

• More greenspace than for options three and four and similar to option one

• Less trees requiring replacement than options one and four and similar to option three.


Isledon Road

Hornsey Road

Housing development in two locations Higher rise buildings than for option one (difference shown in yellow).


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Option two Option three

Less greenspace than for options one and two. Easier access to Kinloch Park

Bigger leisure centre than options one and two.

Points to consider:• Bigger leisure centre than for options one and two

and so more capacity for extending sports, leisure and community facilities

• More housing development than in options one and two, comprising a mix of flats and town houses for families

• More new homes and more additional funding for leisure and community facilities than for options one and two

• Higher rise buildings, as for option two with additional housing on top of the new leisure centre

• Less greenspace gained than for options one and two but more than option four

• Less trees requiring replacement than options one and four and similar to option two.


Isledon Road

Hornsey Road

Housing development in three locations, including on top of the new leisure centre (shown in purple) Higher rise buildings as for option two (shown in yellow).


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Option four

Bigger leisure centre than other options.More greenspace than at present but less than other options. Easier access to Kinloch Park.

Points to consider:• Biggest leisure centre and so greatest capacity for

extending sports, leisure and community facilities• More housing development than for the other options,

comprising a mix of flats and town houses for families • Maximum additional funding for leisure

and community facilities

• Higher rise buildings, as for options two and three, spread over three sites and on top of the new leisure centre

• More greenspace than at present but less than other options

• More trees requiring replacement than options two and three and similar to option one.


Isledon Road

Hornsey Road

Housing development in four locations, including on top of the new leisure centre (shown in purple) Higher rise buildings as for options two and three (shown in yellow).


Frequently asked questions

How will improvements be funded?Islington Council has already allocated £12 million to this project. All of the designs include an element of housing development to contribute additional finance, not put pressure on council tax and to meet the council’s target for building new homes. This will be a mix of social and private housing.

How long will it take?This consultation is just the start of the process. The results will help to inform more detailed design proposals which the council will consult on again as part of the planning process. This is likely to take a minimum of 18 months. In addition we need to co-ordinate this project with the timing of the development work at Ironmonger Row Baths and Finsbury Leisure Centre. Depending on the final design, the construction phase could take anywhere between 18-24 months.

What disruption will there be?Our leisure services will of course be disrupted as a result of this project. Where possible, the council will aim to minimise disruption and make temporary arrangements to enable our customers to continue enjoying their sport and leisure activities. Where this isn’t possible we will provide information and signposting to alternative facilities in the area.

What will happen to membership and admission prices?The development will not lead to an increase in fees and charges and we will continue to offer a comprehensive package of concessions at the Sobell Leisure Centre. The council sets prices in line with inflation and levels of demand.

Why can’t the council keep the building as it is and refurbish it?We have explored the option of refurbishing the centre. However, our investigations into the costs have shown that this option would be more expensive and as disruptive as the other options shown here. It would offer neither value for money, nor the flexibility to increase and improve facilities within the building.

What will happen to the trees on the site?We are keen to protect as many trees as possible as part of any development. The impact on trees is indicated in each of the options. Where removing is unavoidable, we would seek to replant three new trees in the area for every lost tree.

Does the council plan to improve the one-way system on the roads around the Sobell site?The roads around the centre are managed jointly by Islington Council and Transport for London (TfL). The redevelopment gives us an opportunity to work with TfL to reconsider the layout of the one-way system and how it could be improved to increase road safety and access to the building.

Why are you reducing the size of the car park?The current car park was designed for visitors to attend large events and is not fully used. The council is committed to encouraging use of public transport – for health and environmental reasons. The Sobell site is easily accessible by public transport with 12 bus routes serving the area. It can also be reached by underground and rail services. Finally, residents have told us they want more parks and open spaces and so by reducing the car park we can increase the amount of greenspace in the area.

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Staffed exhibitions

Tuesday 3 June 6-8pmThursday 5 June 6-8pmSaturday 7 June 10-12 noonWednesday 11 June 6-8pmSunday 15 June 10-12 noonMonday 16 June 6-8pmFriday 20 June 6-8pmMonday 23 June 3-5pm

Wednesday 25 June 3-5pmSaturday 28 June 2-4pm

Guided tours (12 places per tour)

Monday 9 June 7pm Thursday 12 June 1pmSaturday 14 June 11am Tuesday 17 June 7pm

Find out moreAn exhibition on the future options for the Sobell Leisure Centre will be on display in the reception of the building from Friday 30 May to Monday 30 June. Staff will be available at specific times (listed below) to discuss your queries. There is no need to book, just turn up.

In addition we’ll be offering guided tours of the site to highlight the challenges it faces. To reserve a place call 020 7527 2192. Places are limited to 12 people per tour.

Contact Islington222 Upper Street, London N1 1XRE [email protected] 020 7527 2000F 020 7527 5001Minicom 020 7527 1900W www.islington.gov.uk

If you would like this document in large print or Braille, audiotape or in anotherlanguage, please contact 020 7527 2000.

For more information, please contact David Walton on 020 7527 2192.

Printed on 80% recycled paper using vegetable based inks. Published May 2008.

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