By Neil Gibson, Project Director, Blacktown City Council
Opened in November 2023, the Blacktown Exercise, Sports and Technology Hub was envisioned as a facility within Blacktown International Sportspark that uses technology, research and a multidisciplinary approach to positively impact community health, research, sporting performance and rehabilitation. Here, Project Director Neil Gibson shares his thoughts on the concept of the community leisure centre, as well as some of the thinking that informed the direction the development of this new facility took.
Leisure. What does that work conjure for you? The popular 1991 album by Blur; an iconic speech by Spud in Trainspotting who declared, ‘my pleasure is in other people’s leisure’ during his ill-fated job interview; or, perhaps, more simply, time off work?
Our interpretation of what leisure time means has changed over the past half century with its use overtaken by terms such as ‘exercise’, ‘family time’ or ‘wellness’. Historically, cities protected areas of green space from urban development to ensure that residents had somewhere for leisure activities.
Roman cities provisioned public baths in these spaces, some of which are still in use. With the march of time, green space and public baths were supplanted with leisure centres, buildings that included swimming pools, changing rooms, cafes, and indoor sports halls.
Leisure centres, however, are in crisis. Edinburgh Council (in Scotland) is contemplating the closure of eight leisure centres because of financial pressures. Closer to home, a study highlighted that 40 per cent of Australian swimming pools will reach the end of their lifespan this decade with an estimated $11 billion required to replace or refurbish the aging infrastructure.
A new era
Many public infrastructure projects built 50 years ago no longer represent a benefit to the community. Contemporary thinking has evolved, and leisure centres of the future are unlikely to look like their predecessors. This is the opportunity presented to local councils who have received funding to refurbish or build new facilities.
So, how will these developments reflect the changing needs and interests of communities, while developing a business plan that reduces subsidies and provisions for long term maintenance and repair?
Refurbishment or upgrade projects must battle the temptation to retain what is already in situ. There are often good reasons for this. Existing users will make a strong case for facilities to be retained, irrespective of the broader level of use within the community. It is also hard for people to imagine a facility working in a different way; inertia exists in all organisations with little incentive to rock the boat and challenge the status quo.
If we don’t replace existing facilities, someone must decide what would represent better value for money and result in greater use. This is not an easy task, even when supported by industry experts. This is not a new challenge. Since the mid 1900s, companies have invested time and money in ensuring they do not miss opportunities to innovate their working practices, fall behind the competition and become paralysed by ‘group think’.
Business process reengineering, or BPR for short, helps organisations think in a new way. It was intended to challenge traditionally held views and, where appropriate, tear up the rule book in favour of something that would work more effectively. Adopting some of the principles of BPR may allow us to think more broadly about what leisure centres are and could be in the future.
Reengineering through design
Leisure centres do not have to be limited to indoor sports halls and swimming pools. The opportunity to attract businesses who provide additional community benefit should not be missed. This might include the co-location of health centres, non-prescribing pharmacies, education providers, counselling services and retail stores such as book shops, hairdressers, sports medicine providers and community advisory services.
Families will see real benefit in being able to access private education offerings such as language classes in the same place their children do swimming lessons, or in being able to see a doctor in the same place as their children can use a playground. In addition to the additional social benefit that co-locating businesses in leisure centres brings, there is also a financial incentive. The rental income can help to offset the long-term subsidy that Councils or other operators incur.
Permeable boundaries
Current initiatives aim to open school playgrounds and sporting fields outside traditional school hours, provisioning accessible facilities for the whole community. Leisure centres should follow suit. Increasing permeability and allowing free access to at least some facilities delivers a social benefit for those to whom the entry fee poses a barrier. Strategies to facilitate this might include positioning the reception and associated turnstiles to allow free access to end of trip facilities. It may include positioning bike racks near external seating and the cafe. Both will attract those who enjoy walking or cycling as a starting off point or somewhere to stop along their route.
For many children, splash pad facilities will be their first experience of water play, and represent something that can be positioned so that access is free and unrestricted, in the same way that community playgrounds are. Whilst this represents an ongoing cost, the social benefit it provides cannot be measured in monetary terms alone. In Australia especially, providing access to water facilities during the hot summer months as a heat refuge, while also introducing children to water in a safe environment cannot be underestimated. Further, the more families use a facility and associate it with providing a societal benefit, the more likely, through habit alone, they will be to use chargeable facilities as their families get older.
Physical literacy underpins the pursuit of an active lifestyle and is best learnt during the formative years of childhood. It includes the ability to run, jump, land, throw, twist and hop, skills developed through the unstructured play that occurs in playgrounds. New developments may consider how such areas can be included in their design and free to use by the community. This may be outside the facility or, for the more adventurous, form part of the building’s structure.
A fantastic project undertaken by Buildcorp at Santa Sophia Catholic College in Sydney saw a large-scale play structure designed into the fabric of the building, allowing students to traverse levels by climbing, sliding, hanging and swinging. It has made informal play and physical activity part of the students’ daily habits, something research tells us is an important step in achieving positive long term health outcomes. There is no reason why leisure centres cannot follow suit.
Mixing things up
Despite changes in the number of leisure activities and sporting pursuits, leisure centres haven’t followed suit; we still see generic indoor sports halls lined for basketball, volleyball and other court sports, and pools for lap swimming. Whilst there is a demand for these facilities, their participation rates are dwindling and have been for some time. The range of activities for people of all ages to take part in are as diverse as they have ever been, which new facilities should reflect. We have seen a sharp uptake in sports such as walking football, tag rugby, pickleball, yoga, gymnastics and dance. So how can new leisure centres accommodate this shift in how the community is choosing to be active?
Smaller, modular rooms that can accommodate activities like dancing, yoga or pilates should be considered, with fixtures and fittings reflecting the aesthetic nature of the activities. Where indoor sports halls are unavoidable, technology that allows court lines to be projected onto the floor should be preferred to permanent markings. As much as possible, spaces should be flexible and able to accommodate a range of activities. We do not yet know what we will be doing with our leisure time in twenty years.
The largest growth area in how people spend their leisure time is online gaming and streaming services on television. E-gaming is the fastest growing sport and, in time, will appear in mainstream events like the Olympics. Despite this, the inclusion of facilities catering for gamers in leisure centres is lacking, even in those built more recently. Spaces that provide screens where people can connect their device would be a popular choice for participants of all ages. The room might also double as a space where people could congregate to watch movies and TV programs, especially during the day when leisure centres tend to be quieter. Although many people will have this capacity at home, lots of people don’t, or would welcome the opportunity to do so with company. Leisure centres, with some reimagining of their raison d’etre, can make a significant contribution to reducing the negative health consequences associated with the growing levels of loneliness and isolation.
The 50m swimming pool is a mainstay of leisure centres, especially in Australia. Few people, however, compete at swimming nor will use the facilities for lap swimming. Those who do would be willing to travel; installing a 50m pool in each new development may not, strategically, be the best course of action.
So, what are the alternatives? Recent developments have included program pools designed specifically for youth and adult swimming lessons. These pools can also cater for aqua classes that are popular amongst older user groups and those recovering from injury, as well as being a safe place for adults who are not themselves confident swimmers to take their children.
Other facilities have incorporated free play areas that mimic ocean pools, such as Gunyama Park Aquatic and Recreation Centre in Zetland, Sydney. These pools allow families to play in bodies of water that cater for different levels of competency, moving from the shallower to the deeper areas as they become more confident and proficient in the water. Incorporating ample seating into such pools is also beneficial as it provides parents who do not swim themselves or who prefer not to go into the water a place from which to supervise their children. Pools like this should not be just an add on to the traditional 50m pool but considered as an alternative.
Sign a non-compete clause
Memberships for use of gym facilities at leisure centres are often a significant component of their revenue plan. The level of competition in this space, however, has grown exponentially with a range of budget and boutique gyms now available, often with greater flexibility in terms of membership options and opening hours. Should public leisure centres compete in this space? Why create a gym when the community can access a very similar offering in the private sector at a competitive rate? Perhaps it’s better to use this capital budget to create new spaces that the private sector does not offer?
New developments cannot answer every question raised here. Indeed, in some areas, the traditional idea of a leisure centre may still be valid. In others, however, a more strategic approach will be warranted. This will involve an assessment of similar facilities in the surrounding area. It will include community consultation regarding which facilities there is the greatest demand for, or, which they believe are under supplied. As a starting point, a change in language may help facilitate some of this analysis.
If we continue to refer to leisure centres as such it will reinforce the traditional stereotypes of what these facilities are and what they look like. Equally problematic is when we call them aquatic centres, removing the potential to question whether a pool is required or not.
In the late 1800s Jane Addams established the Hull House project in Chicago. The project provided a settlement for the promotion of education, practical skills, cultural exchanges, medical services, exercise, play and political debate. It was, in modern day terminology, the combination of leisure and community centres. The Hull House project captured the essence of a cultural centre as somewhere the community could grow, recover, play, share stories and be cared for.
Perhaps then, what we need are more cultural centres which combine place making, the arts and social enterprise with spaces where the community can be active. Achieving this may be the best way to future proof new developments for the next 50 years. After all, history does have a habit of repeating itself.
