A £9.1 million health hub has officially opened its doors to the public.
The Warsop Health Hub, off Carr Lane in Mansfield, was officially opened by the Executive Mayor of Mansfield and local community champion Graham Hall, MBE, at a ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday (18 June).
Also in attendance at the event was Tour of Britain cyclist Ross Lamb, as well as Mansfield Harriers representatives, Deputy Lord Lieutenant Tracey Davenport, pupils from Birklands Primary School, and wider strategic stakeholder partners.
The hub is now home to various new facilities, including a 15 x 8-metre swimming pool and splash play area, a changing village, a gym, a multi-purpose hall, a café, and a community space area. Also, the newly tarmacked multi-use games area to play sports outdoors is now open to residents, still free of charge, just behind the new building.
The delivery of the council’s £9.1 million health hub was made possible thanks to funding agreements secured from various partners and agencies. This includes up to £5 million from the council, a £1.8 million capital grant from Sport England, a £3 million allocation from the Government’s Towns Fund, and £103,967 from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to create a dedicated changing place within the building.
Executive Mayor of Mansfield, Andy Abrahams, said: “I am thrilled that we are finally at the opening event for Warsop Health Hub, months ahead of schedule. In the last year, it has been a dream come true to see such progress being made to bring a community facility to the people of Warsop.
“It has been a labour of love and wouldn’t have been possible without the commitment from fellow councillors, officers, funding partners, and, of course, the parish residents.
“I look forward to seeing the community embrace the new facility and make the most of all the opportunities it will bring in terms of employment, aspiration, and health and wellbeing.”
Pupils from Birklands Primary School came along to sing to attendees at the opening event. Members of its school council then unveiled a plaque to commemorate a time capsule that pupils had filled with artwork and drawings before burying there in October last year.
The hub is now operated by Serco Leisure/More Leisure Community Trust (MLCT), who are also responsible for the council’s three other leisure facility sites in Mansfield: Rebecca Adlington, Oak Tree, and Water Meadows.
There are already more than 500 members signed up to the hub and most local schools have also enrolled in swimming sessions from September.
A range of programmes to suit all ages and abilities has been developed to encourage residents in Warsop and beyond to get involved and use the new facility. The full programme can be viewed at www.mansfieldleisure.com/warsop-health-hub.
Brian Taylor, Chair of MLCT said: “As a leisure trust, working with our partner Serco Leisure, we’re very proud to have been chosen to operate this fantastic new facility, which offers such a broad range of fitness, wellbeing and community-focused amenities for the people of this region.”
To ensure the long-term sustainability of the new centre, solar panels have been installed along with a new detention basin as part of Severn Trent’s Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) programme.
The water company partnered with the council to divert the existing car park surface water out of its combined sewer network and into sustainable drainage, meaning all future rainfall will be recycled and used again within the SuDs system.
The hub is just one of five projects funded from the £12.3m awarded to Mansfield District Council in 2021 from the Towns Fund allocation.
The health hub project came about through residents stepping forward, completing surveys, and discussing their and the parish’s needs in 2019—a study that Sport England jointly funded with the council to review leisure and community provision. The outcome was a list of suggestions and ideas that would lead to the right mix of activities, services, and facilities to meet the community’s needs.
Lisa Dodd-Mayne, Executive Director of Place at Sport England, added: “Uniting the Movement wants to support all people to take part in sport and physical activity, regardless of their backgrounds, bank balance or postcodes.
“The Warsop Health Hub provides so many ways for local people of all ages and abilities to get active and connect to their community. It’s the first facility to open following our ‘Leisure Local concept’ - co-created with the local community with a wide range of facilities available and also including measures to make it as environmentally sustainable as possible.
“We’re delighted to see it open.”
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