Construction work at the £15.5m leisure centre and community hub project on the Festival Hall site in Kirkby has started.

Ashfield District Council leader Coun Jason Zadrozny and chief executive Carol Cooper-Smith met with Kier representatives at the site (pictured) to see the work begin.

The new leisure centre will be built alongside the existing Festival Hall centre. It will bring new facilities, including a 25m community pool with moveable floor, sauna and steam rooms, fitness suite, clip and climb, and adventure play.

The new centre will open in spring 2022 with demolition of the old Festival Hall completed by the following autumn.

Kier will be working in collaboration with the council and Festival Hall to keep existing leisure facilities open throughout the construction period.

Coun Zadrozny said: “It’s an incredible feeling to be on site and start to see where the different parts of the leisure centre will be built.

“This project is something that the people of Ashfield have been long-promised and I am confident that in partnership with Kier, we will deliver a vibrant community-based facility that will rival any other in the country. I am so proud to lead a Council that keeps its promises to its residents.”

Kier are also looking at a number of ways to support the local community throughout the build. These include workshops for the young people, volunteer events, site visits and work placements.

Martin Williamson, operations manager at Kier Regional Building North & Scotland, said: “We’re delighted to be working with Ashfield District Council on this state-of-the-art new leisure facility, which will provide much-needed modernised facilities for local people. The project draws on both our technical excellence and experience of delivering multi-use leisure facilities.”