Revealed, town hall plan for £15m sports village

A VAST ‘sports village’ is planned for land neighbouring a council estate which is being pulled down.

Salford council has kept the proposal under wraps but the M.E.N. can reveal a multi-million pound bid is being prepared to Sports England for key funding.

The new complex would be on a plot near High Street Estate, Pendleton, which borders Langworthy.

It is proposed the Clarendon and Ordsall centres would close and be replaced by the brand new facility costing £15.3m.

The new centre would include a 12-court sports hall and 10-lane 25m pool.

Sources have told the M.E.N. the new centre would include astroturf football pitches, a gym, and possibly a library as well.

Some houses have already been knocked down on the estate but the rest, which are empty, except for one family, are earmarked for demolition.

The majority have not been lived in for more than a decade.

The estate was a flashpoint during the riots of August 2011 when crowds gathered at Salford Precinct for an orgy of organised, prearranged trouble.

It was also the scene of a notorious shooting at the now demolished Brass Handles pub in 2006 in which two young men hired to carry out a hit were shot dead with their own guns.

The bulldozing of the 150 houses will cost the council £1.1m.

Three years ago the council agreed to the demolition of the homes on condition 52 ‘affordable rented homes’ were provided to ‘decant’ people into.

But since then the council has not released any plans publicly for the future of the estate.

A bid of approximately £6m is being made to Sport England.

The new centre would be run by Salford Community Leisure, which already manages pools and sports centres across the borough.

The nearby, ageing, Clarendon Recreation Centre, off Liverpool Street would be demolished.

Other funding sources are also being sought by the council.

The council has refused to comment on the plans.

But after being contacted by the M.E.N. a memo was emailed to all councillors.

It says: “Dear Councillors, The City Council have engaged consultants, Strategic Leisure, to undertake a piece of work leading to the submission for grant funding to Sport England in April/May next year.

“Strategic Leisure may well contact you as part of the local consultation that is required as part of this process for Sport England. This work will also inform the final design brief.”

It is understood a detailed design for the new centre is near completion.

One family, the Wilsons, remain on the High Street Estate. They have been in dispute with the council for nearly 10 years and have refused to move from their home in Holcombe Close.

Two years ago the M.E.N. reported Salford’s sports centres were to be replaced or refurbished at a cost of £35m – in a bid to save lives.

The improvement programme will taken 10 years to complete as it is reliant on council and Sport England funding.