Olympic swimmer Rebecca Adlington officially opens Selby’s new leisure centre

MARK Crane was on a train to Hull when he noticed a plume of smoke rising into the air over Selby. It was February 28, 2012: just over three years ago.

“I didn’t know what it was. But having got to work I had to turn right around and come back again because I was told it had been the leisure centre going up in flames,” the leader of Selby District Council recalls.

It was a huge blow, for the town and the district it serves.

The leisure centre, which had undergone a £1.1 million refurbishment 18 months earlier, was almost completely gutted.

For four hours, the fire – which seems to have started in the sauna area – raged through the centre, causing hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of damage to the roof, pool and newly-refurbished gym area.

“It was devastating,” Cllr Crane says. “We’d just spent £1 million doing it up, putting in a new gym...”

There was no question of the centre being used again. The district council bought Profile, formerly Walker’s Bingo Club in Portholme Crescent, and within four months the Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust was running it on the council’s behalf as a temporary centre.

But there was no pool – those wanting to swim had to use the pools at schools in Barlby and Sherburn.

Within a year of the fire, however, the district council confirmed that it would demolish the old leisure centre and build an entirely new one from the ashes.

Sport England chipped in with £2 million of funding; the district council contributed £1.5 million itself; and gradually a new centre rose on the site of the old.

Now, just over three years after the fire which tore through the old centre, the new one has opened its doors.

Built at a cost of £6.5 million, it includes two swimming pools (a training pool and a six-lane 25-metre pool); a health and fitness centre; a class and exercise studio; a refurbished synthetic sports pitch; a multi-use space for large classes, activities and sports such as judo, dance sessions and children’s activities and a sauna.

The first paying customers were allowed in last Saturday. But the official opening will be on Saturday, when Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer Rebecca Adlington will do the honours.

Rebecca Adlington

It has been a long journey from that devastating fire three years ago. But while he wouldn’t use the term “blessing in disguise”, Cllr Crane admits the fire gave Selby a “wonderful opportunity”.

“And there couldn’t be a better person to open it than Becky Adlington,” he says. “When I was told that we’d got her, I was delighted.”

Three years ago, DAN BEAN was the first reporter allowed inside the devastated leisure centre. Here, he recalls that day

“I was driving to our Walmgate office at just before 8am when I heard a report of smoke causing traffic problems in and around Scott Road. Instead of turning towards York, I turned right and headed down the A19 towards Selby, and the thick, dark plumes of smoke were visible from well outside the town.

“The flames were already contained within the building by the time I got there, so the only thing to see was smoke, blue flashing lights, and emergency services doing their best to save the building. Crowds had already gathered to watch from the police cordon close to the bottom of Gowthorpe, but officers allowed me to get closer to the scene, where I remained for most of the day – I was even the first reporter to be allowed inside the building once the fire was out.

“From the outside, it looked bad, but the pictures I took show the incredible physical damage to the building. However, they can’t put across the dense, heavy air, the reek of smoke, and the pools of warm ankle-deep water throughout the remains of the building.

The devastation was total, despite the best efforts of the fire service, but the town and district council, along with their health service provider, were quick to take steps and ensure Selby was not without some sort of facility for too long.

“It doesn’t seem like three years since the fire, but it’s good to know the town now has a worthy successor to the Abbey Leisure Centre.”