New sports, newish sports centre: the £130m scheme for the Crystal Palace NSC includes plans for the stadium and pools, plus relatively new sports in the area between track and sports hall, such as 3×3 basketball and padel tennis
Proposals for what London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan has welcomed as a “once-in-a-generation” redevelopment of the sports facilities in Crystal Palace Park have been submitted in a planning application to Bromley Council.
For half-a-century, Crystal Palace National Sports Centre was one of the world’s top sporting venues, the track and field stadium witnessing 28 world records, while the 50-metre pool clocked up 19 world bests. The centre provided training facilities for generations of Londoners and youngsters from Surrey, Kent and Sussex, as well as staging sports as varied as rugby league, basketball and cyclo-cross, while even hosting a Papal visit.
But the stadium was badly neglected – despite being supposed to provide facilities as part of London’s “Olympic legacy” – and the pools have been closed since 2020, when cracks in the concrete structure were discovered during the covid lockdown.
Mayor Khan has had CPNSC in his in-tray since he inherited the problem of fixing the decaying centre from his predecessor, Boris Johnson, who seriously considered giving the site, and a chunk of the park, away to a Chinese billionaire in an exceedingly dodgy-looking deal.
Today, Mayor Khan said: “I am delighted that the once-in-a-generation redevelopment of the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre has reached another key milestone with the submission of the planning application for its transformation,” Mayor Khan said today.
Record-breaker: Dave Bedford had a message for the press when he set the 10,000m world record at Crystal Palace in 1973
“This is a historic and much-loved national sporting and community facility, where many UK sporting stars have started their careers and trained, but it needs major investment and refurbishment and I am committed to supporting this.
“I am pleased with the positive progress that has been made so far and we look forward to working closely with partners and the local community to create an outstanding sporting venue as we work together to build a better, fairer London for all.”
It is almost three years since the Mayor announced his plan for a redevelopment of the site, to upgrade facilities for the community, including refurbishing the swimming and diving pools, improvements to the indoor facilities, external pitches and stadium.
Last year, the Mayor confirmed the appointment of Morgan Sindall Construction to deliver the design and build of the centre. The contractor has submitted the planning application for the 37-acre site to bring it up to “a modern standard, while showcasing its heritage and historic features”. In other words, the centre, which opened in 1964, is to receive a new lease of life, but mostly as a training venue, without the intention of staging major global events.
Key aspects of the proposed work include:
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- A full refurbishment of the Grade II*-listed Crystal Palace National Sports Centre building. This will include improved accessibility, an enlarged gym and new dedicated spaces for sporting clubs
- The creation of a six-court padel centre, 3×3 basketball courts, five-a-side football pitches and a full-size artificial multi-sports pitch
- Restoring the diving pool and swimming pool
- Improvements to the indoor sports zones to elevate elite performance by providing year-round use for clubs, athletes and the community
- A new community space where sports, leisure and play combines with a café, 200-metre running track, a 3×3 basketball court and an outdoor gym
- Renovations to the existing stands in the stadium including completing the bowl with additional seating. This has been designed in collaboration with athletes to boost the atmosphere at live events
Pooling resources: the Crystal Palace pool, once the venue for national championships and international competition, has been empty for six years
As with so many public infrastructure projects, the rub will be in the funding of the work. “As the next phase of work progresses, the Mayor will work with partners to secure investment for the stadium works, ensuring the whole site can reach its full potential and continue to inspire Londoners for years to come,” today’s announcement said.
Morgan Sindall say that the plans included in the planning application “represent something quite ambitious and different”.
Morgan Sindall’s Richard Dobson, said: “Everyone working on this scheme has pushed hard to make the design a showcase in what a modern, sustainable, inclusive and community-centred leisure centre should look like – all while paying homage to the venue’s inspiring legacy.
“This combination of driving factors means the site will not only reclaim its original vision of being a ‘glass pavilion in the park’ that supports the health and well-being of Londoners, but we will have laid the groundwork for a centre of excellence where a new generation of athletes can break and set their own records.”
Read more: ‘This is a once-in-a-generation chance. We have to get it right’
Read more: Mayor Khan fires starting pistol for £130m sports centre refurb
Read more: Crystal Palace at risk as London squanders its Olympic legacy
Read more: Chinese billionaire wants second helpings of Palace takeaway
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