Academy and Leisure Centre opening heralds Consett regeneration

Durham County Council’s £44M regeneration project in Consett has reached a major milestone with this week’s opening of the Consett Academy.

Providing a new home to 1,700 students, the new campus offers students modern and state-of-the-art facilities, and access to a range of shared use leisure facilities.

The Academy adjoins the new Consett Leisure Centre that opened last month. The Centre comprises two swimming pools, studio spaces, a fitness suite and three squash courts.

The Academy and Leisure Centre are two distinct facilities, but both are part of one large steel-framed structure, measuring more than 120m long x 32m wide.

Both have their own main entrances at either end of the building, while internally the Academy and Leisure Centre are separated by secure lockdown doors, allowing them to either operate independently or as one large centre during academic sports times.

This dividing line which splits the steel frame in half was consequently also chosen as the best point to locate an integral expansion joint that was needed as the frame is so long.

Working on behalf of main contractor Carillion, Harry Marsh [Engineers] erected 900t of structural steelwork for the project.