page_title: Hillingdon Sports and Leisure Complex
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Hillingdon Sports and Leisure Complex / History
caption_attribution_description: Uxbridge Lido (2007)
context_page_description: The Hillingdon Sports and Leisure Complex is a leisure centre in Uxbridge, operated by Fusion Lifestyle on behalf of the London Borough of Hillingdon. The complex is centred on the Grade II listed outdoor swimming pool, known as Uxbridge Lido until 2010, when the newly built centre and refurbished pool were opened. A new indoor pool was built beside the lido as part of the redevelopment works, opening in February 2010, followed a day later by the outdoor pool.
  The outdoor pool was built in 1935 in the "Moderne" or Art Deco style, at a cost of £24,500. It was closed in 1998 and became subject to heavy vandalism. In 2007 it was announced that the pool would be restored in time to be used as a training pool for the 2012 Summer Olympics.
context_section_description: The architect for the lido was G. Percy Trentham. Before the opening of the pool, many residents swam in a section of the Frays River near Harefield Road, and the Colne. The construction of the buildings and pool cost £24,500 at that time, and 120 local unemployed men were employed to complete the works.
  The opening ceremony for the pool was held on 31 August 1935, organised by Uxbridge Urban District Council. The chairman of the council, Reverend Luther Bouch, performed the opening, while Alf Price became the first superintendent.
  Athletes participating in the 1948 Summer Olympics in London were housed at the nearby RAF Uxbridge, and used the pool to train in.
  Hillingdon Council closed the pool after the 1982 season and did not open it in 1983. It was then reopened by Uxbridge Pool Action Group in 1984, following a £148,000 grant from the Greater London Council. They installed solar heating panels and a huge water slide, as well as additional dry-side activities to try to improve the viability of the pool. However, it did not prove to be a viable proposition in the long-term and the Council eventually took the pool back in 1989.
  Lidos historian Andy Hoines wrote: "Subsequently the pool closed down a second time, but was reopened again by the Yiewsley Pool Trust by the time of a visit I made in 1993. The current closure after the 1998 season was prompted by damage attributed to incursions from travellers, as well as the perceived need for major expenditure to bring the facilities up to recent Health and Safety standards."
  The pool, pavilion building, entrance building and both fountains were granted Grade II listed status in 1998. Despite the listing and the pool closing to the public, the buildings were subjected to heavy vandalism.
caption: The heavily vandalised outdoor pool, photographed in 2007
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