Minister opens regional sports hall

Home > News and Events > News - release archive > 2008 > September

Stewart Maxwell, Minister for Communities and Sport, has officially opened the new regional sports hall at the Lagoon Leisure Centre in Paisley.

The new sports hall is the first dedicated indoor sports facility in Paisley. It offers sport, fitness and activity sessions for all ages. In addition, it provides a regional focus for basketball and badminton with weekly squad training and regular competitions.

Having opened to the public in June, the facility has already been well received by customers of the Lagoon which has over 350,000 visits each year.

The new extension has provided a six court regional sports hall with retractable seating for 380 spectators. The fitness suite has been relocated and almost doubled in size and the entrance area has been redesigned.

The main foyer has been refurbished and expanded to improve access and offers customers a new coffee shop and bistro service. There is also a new health and beauty treatment room, dance and exercise studio and extended car parking space.

The development was funded by Renfrewshire Council and Renfrewshire Leisure with a lottery contribution from sportscotland.

A few months ago the Lagoon hosted the major sport summit “Renfrewshire – Gateway to the Games.” The event focused on positioning Renfrewshire to be in the best shape to gain economic and sporting benefits from Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games in 2014. It also outlined how Renfrewshire Council was taking forward its sports strategy to increase participation in sport and support elite competitors.

Sports Minister Stewart Maxwell said: “This high-quality facility will be a great training venue to develop athletes and make sure that they can be all they can be. The refurbishment of the leisure centre will also get people of all ages and abilities from across Renfrewshire involved in physical activity. The Scottish Government is particularly committed to encouraging more women to participate in sport and we are confident that the facilities, particularly the newly built crèche, will enable them to get involved and get active.”

Councillor Iain Nicolson, Chair of Renfrewshire Leisure, said it was “particularly appropriate” that the Lagoon was the venue for that meeting. He added: “Our new facilities have already proved very popular with the Lagoon’s customers. There’s a growing realisation of the health benefits of participation in sport.

"The Lagoon’s new high quality facilities allow people of all ages to get involved in sport and fitness in a way that best suits their needs or the time that they have available."

Among the clubs currently available are badminton, basketball, trampolining, aikido, karate, gymnastics, judo, cheerleading, netball, kids club, unihoc and carpet bowls.

Louise Martin CBE, Chair of sportscotland said: “sportscotland is delighted to have supported the creation of the regional sports hall at the Lagoon Leisure Centre with a Lottery award of £750,000 from our Building for Sport programme.

“sportscotland is committed to providing quality, accessible facilities for communities across Scotland. There needs to be the right quality and mix of facilities to provide opportunities to participate in a range of sports, driving an increase in participation, as well as supporting those with aspirations to compete at a higher level. The new regional sports hall is a great example of this, servicing the sporting needs of the local community and elite athletes alike.”

Press release: Thursday 18 September 2008