Beach Leisure Centre

Beach Leisure Centre
Main entrance
Location	Aberdeen Beach Front, Aberdeen[1]
Opened	1 March 1989 (1989-03-01) (building) 26 June 1989 (1989-06-26) (swimming pool)
Closed	21 August 2022 (2022-08-21) (swimming pool) 16 April 2023 (2023-04-16) (whole building)
Owned by	Aberdeen City Council

Rear of the Centre with flumes

The Beach Leisure Centre was a leisure centre located in Aberdeen, Scotland operated by Sport Aberdeen.[2]

The building first opened in 1989 and closed on 16 April 2023, at the same time as Bucksburn Swimming Pool, after a £687,000 reduction in funding by Aberdeen City Council, following the closure of the leisure pool on 21 August 2022 due to an increase in energy costs.[3] It was situated adjacent to Linx Ice Arena and Aberdeen Beach Ballroom, a category B listed building.

The Beach Leisure Centre is set to be demolished as part of the £150m City Centre/Beach Masterplan.

History

A leisure centre at the beach was being discussed by the council as early as 1979.[4] Construction began in 1986[5] and the leisure centre opened on 1 March 1989,[6] with the swimming pool opening 4 months later on 26 June.[7] The centre was initially operated by Crossland Leisure.[8][9]

The flumes have not operated since the COVID-19 pandemic due to their poor condition.[10] In May 2022, Sport Aberdeen announced that the pool would close on 21 August after the summer school holidays as a cost saving measure due to high energy prices. It stated that the situation would be reviewed and the pool could reopen in summer 2023.[11][12]

On 2 March 2023, the council announced that the leisure centre would close permanently on 16 April 2023,[13] along with Bucksburn Swimming Pool due to a £687,000 reduction in its yearly budget for Sport Aberdeen. The council stated that a new beachfront facility was planned.[14]

Facilities

The building is physically connected to the Beach Ballroom. The Beach Leisure Centre contained a swimming pool and a gym.[15] There were three flumes:[16]

• The Tube - a 120 metre long flume where riders sit on inflatable rafts
• Wipeout - a short, steep flume
• The Pipeline - a 95 metre long flume

Incident

On 11 August 2011, a 12-year-old boy fractured his right ankle and shinbone after colliding with a wall at the end of the Wipeout flume. The incident occurred because there was insufficient water in the trough to slow the boy down at the end of the ride. Sport Aberdeen was fined £8,000 as a result of the incident.[17]

References

1. "Get active @ Beach Leisure Centre". Sport Aberdeen.
2. Hebditch, Jon. "Repairs to Aberdeen's Beach Leisure Centre will begin next year". Press and Journal. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
3. Shanks, Ciaran. "Aberdeen's Beach Leisure Centre and Bucksburn pool to close for good after council cuts". Aberdeen Live. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
4. Mackay, Gordon (4 October 1979). "Beach leisure centre looks almost certain to go ahead". Evening Express. p. 31. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
5. "Work begins on beach complex". The Press and Journal. Aberdeen. 11 September 1986. p. 3.
6. Farquharson, Colin (1 March 1989). "Aberdeen joins leisure leaders". The Press and Journal. Aberdeen. p. 24.
7. "Fun in the surf at the new beach". The Press and Journal. Aberdeen. 23 June 1989. p. 12.
8. "Leisure centre boss denies quit report". Evening Express. 18 July 1990. p. 1. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
9. "Leisure centre misses targets". The Press and Journal. 8 January 1990. p. 19. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
10. Petrie, Calum. "Are Aberdeen's iconic flumes gone forever?". Press and Journal. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
11. "Popular community pool to temporarily close over soaring energy prices". STV News. 15 June 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
12. "Aberdeen swimming pool to close due to spiralling energy costs". BBC News. 15 June 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
13. "An update for our customers". 2 March 2023. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
14. Shanks, Ciaran (2 March 2023). "Beach Leisure Centre and Bucksburn pool to close after budget cuts". aberdeenlive. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
15. Hebditch, Jon (24 August 2019). "Warning over "ageing" Beach Leisure centre". Press and Journal. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
16. Mallon, Margaret (23 September 1989). "My white-knuckle terror!". The Press and Journal. p. 33. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
17. Urquhart, Frank (4 July 2013). "Sport Aberdeen fined £8000 over unsafe flume". The Scotsman. Retrieved 13 April 2022.

External links

• Official website

57°9′21.08″N 2°4′46.24″W