BAM gets first phase of £16m leisure centre project

CONTRACTOR BAM Construction has been appointed as the preferred contractor to transform Warrington’s Great Sankey Leisure Centre into a neighbourhood hub.

Construction on phase one of the £16m project to revamp the centre into a state-of-the-art integrated facility which will provide leisure, health and cultural services for the people of west Warrington will begin at the start of next month.

BAM was appointed by LiveWire, a community interest company which has been managing leisure, library and lifestyle services in Warrington since May 2012.

The dementia friendly facility will include a fitness suite, swimming pools, sports hall, tennis courts, 3G pitch, GP surgeries, library, cafe and health and wellbeing facilities including a spa, with phase 1 set to open to the public in autumn 2016.

More than 700 local residents took part in consultation exercises and in excess of 60 of their suggestions have been incorporated into the design of the hub. The building designs have been made dementia friendly to support local need. 

BAM’s national charity partner is the Alzheimer’s Society and the partnership provides opportunities for the team to fully embrace with, and create, a true dementia friendly environment for local people.

Jan Souness, Managing Director at LiveWire, said: “We are pleased to announce the appointment of BAM as the contractor to carry out the development of the existing Great Sankey Leisure Centre to transform it into a modern integrated facility for the whole community.

“BAM has a wealth of experience in delivering large construction projects and LiveWire are looking forward to working with them to ensure the build meets the needs of the ageing popular in the area.”

BAM construction director Ian Fleming said: “It’s very important to us to deliver this project successfully for the whole community, and not just to build a fantastic facility but to make the opportunity of the build itself into a positive experience for them.

“We’re really looking forward to engaging people and creating something that will truly enhance the lives of everybody who lives here.”

BAM has recently delivered significant projects in the North West, including Manchester City Football Academy, The National Graphene Institute and the UTC@MediaCityUK, and are on site building No 1 Spinningfields in Manchester, The Materials Innovation Factory for the University of Liverpool and ongoing works at Aintree Hospital.

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