Excitement as Sandwell Aquatics Centre ready to open for public

It boasts a 50m swimming pool, a quieter studio pool, the diving pool with 10m high dive tower, a huge gym, three exercise studios, indoor cycling studio, 3 swimming pools and much more.

A launch event was held yesterday as guests including Walsall’s Paralympic gold medal winning swimmer Ellie Simmonds OBE and chairman of Sport England Chris Boardman MBE were given a tour of the site. And schoolchildren also got the chance to jump in yesterday and get some swimming tips from Ellie too. She said: “What’s great about this facility is not just that it’s got this amazing pool, but also the sports hall, the little swimming pool and the wider impact that it’s going to have on the whole community.

“It is going to draw so many people in and see so many people swimming, with local schools able to get access to the pool. That means they’ll be able to learn to swim, which is such a great sport, but also important for water safety as we live in a region with canals and rivers and lakes, so it’s going to have a massive effect on the whole community. It would have been amazing if this had been here when I was coming up, but what will be great is to see all the schools coming in and seeing how great it looks, with the windows with glass and bringing the weather into the pool.”

Leader of Sandwell Council Kerrie Carmichael said: “I would say to pepole to come and have a look and see what we have to offer because it’s an amazing facility and has been built for the community.

“This is also part of the legacy to get children on board to use the centre and help them keep fit and healthy as there’s nowhere else in the West Midlands where an adult or child can swim in an Olympic-sized pool, except for here.” Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street said the centre brought back fond memories of last year’s Commonwealth Games and was proof of the event’s legacy.

The centre was handed over to Sandwell Council in June after work by Wates Construction Group. Sandwell Aquatics Centre hosted all the swimming, para swimming and diving events at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games and the venue was one of the busiest at the Games with events on all 11 days of competitions.

With 66 medal events in total held at the facility, it staged more medal moments than any other venue.

Andy Street said standing in the building brought back happy memories of the Commonwealth Games and said it was inspiring to be there to see the completed centre.

He said: “It’s been a long journey and I was there at the beginning when we first bid for the Games and I was there when we committed to Sandwell being the host for the Aquatics Centre and a community facility, so it’s a dream come true to be here.

“What’s so important is there’s so many youngsters who are going to learn to swim here, which is a critical life skill, and one other thing we’re now putting money into is education to train more swimming teachers across the Black Country and work with Sport England and Active Black Country to build on the many legacies to come from the centre.

“People always say to me, what is the legacy, and you see the physical proof of it as we have this wonderful facility for people to come down to.”

Wates Construction Group delivered the project of time at all stages of the centre and Paul Chandler said he was proud of the work done and the legacy it would lead.

He said: “It was incredible to see the world-class facilities delivered by Wates at Sandwell Aquatics Centre providing a platform for the world’s greatest athletes to succeed as part of the Commonwealth Games last summer.

“But I am even prouder of the legacy we leave behind for the local community and the wider region.

“Sandwell Aquatics Centre is the perfect example how the construction industry can deliver far-reaching local value and opportunity through improved health and wellbeing, local employment, skills and economic investment.

“Not only will the Centre inspire thousands of local people to participate in sport and exercise, at all levels, for generations to come but our presence in the local area since 2018 has also enabled us to spend a total of £45.2million with local suppliers, employ over 50 per cent of our workforce from within a 20 mile radius of the site and create 166 new local jobs.”

Chris Boardman said the centre carried an important legacy, but also provided a way to help secure the future of the NHS as well. He said: “I think the term legacy is bandied about a lot and often isn’t attached to anything, but this is and the centre served its purpose for a wonderful sporting occasion, but it was designed for local communities to use and the Games got a place like this to exist, which is proper legacy.

“It’s a great, really shiny building, embedded in the middle of a number of different communities and accessible to people who need it and it’s not hyperbole to say that this is the future of the NHS as people need to be healthy and fit and they can only do so if the place is accessible and attractive to them and that’s what this place does.”The Sandwell Aquatics Centre officially opens to the public on Monday, July 24.

To find out more about the centre, go to slt-leisure.co.uk/launch/