Page 34 - link magazine

34 The Link Magazine • May 2005
Twenty years on, Link Centre visionary revisits
Continuing our series on the twentieth year since Link Centre opened, we meet one of the key people behind
the vision for the town's largest leisure and recreation centre.
Former Thamesdown Council recreation officer Graham Swatton was reluctant to make a return visit to
Link Centre for the first time in ten years from his home in Wroughton as he wasn't sure if he wanted to
see the changes to the building.
Known as an energetic mover the town's new leisure facilities, as sions with Nigel Honor and his
and shaker in recreation circles, well as having a practical view on design team to get the building we
Graham was given the task of how such a huge building could be wanted within budget." Nigel was
drawing up the brief for a major run. "There are 147 rooms in Link interviewed in the February Link.
recreation centre in 1981, paid for Centre and I had the task of draw- "The council had a vision that
by the council's sale of land for the ing up the specification for every the western expansion, being as
West Swindon shopping centre. wall, floor and ceiling. I remember big as Salisbury, should have fa-
Having been manager of the we had some very tense discus- cilities like a swimming pool and a
Oasis Leisure Centre between 1976 Return visit for Graham Swatton sports hall, community and arts
and 1979, he was well placed to centre.
coordinate the range of uses for "In the 1970s and 1980s Swin-
don was a leader in recreation pro-
vision and it had a big commit-
ment to community development.
Anything Stone UK Ltd. The Oasis was almost unique in
Britain and councillors and the of-
ficers saw a great opportunity to
Suppliers of finely finished granite, marble,
do a lot more in West Swindon, by
li mestone, slate, sandstone and gypsum
having an ice rink and a two and a
Granite Worktops half court sports hall, plus the li-
brary, arts studio and community
Enhance your kitchen with the beauty of natural stone.
suite.
Table tops, bar tops. shop counters, reception desks.
"The Link Centre contains a lot
Affordable granite worktops from £137 per metre. of innovation like using the heat
Local supplier and stockists. visit us and see your stone. from the ice freezing equipment to
It s easy to replace your existing worktops - or we can Haydon groups get heat the pool. We had to get build-
work alongside your kitchen installer. price promise ing regulations clearance for the
i 1)(s o ns L-Ld n were hit by a 30 per cent room rent
Call us now on 08702 422 998 Long established user groups of steep seating in the rink to provide
Showroom: Unit 41 BSS House, Cheney Manor the Haydon Centre received a spectators with the best view pos-
sible.
shock in early April when they
rise.
When the centre was managed
Association, such users benefited
C by the Haydon Wick Community
z1 don Council has taken the oppor-
from special community rates. But
after it disbanded a year ago, Swin-
Loft Conversion Specialists
.
tunity to bring rents in line with its
other leisure centres.
Ii1J I ther increases but received assur- 24 April 1985, Thamesdown Mayor
The Young at Heart group was
one that feared the effects of fur-
ances of price stability after a meet-
ing between John Short, director
of Swindon Services, and parish
Harry Garret and his wife gives a civic
councillors. "We understood that
further increases were in the pipe-
tre with help from Lincoln the mascot
line but it's a relief to be told that initiation to ice skating at the Link Cen-
there will be no further significant "I'm proud of our commitment
Acenti Designs Ltd specialises in converting all types of loft into quality living space. price rises in the next two or three to wheelchair users. Every door
Whether you need more space or wish to expand your house rather than moving, loft years," said long time group mem- was wide enough to get through,
conversions are a cost effective way of increasing your living space without losing ber Arthur Shellard. years before legislation required
valuable garden area. We convert all types of lofts including modern `W' truss lofts. High charge increases have also it."
We are a professional engineering company, who make extensive use of computer been imposed on Swindon Card Graham said it was strange to
aided design (CAD), to optimise the space and the head height within a loft and to holders entitled to the largest dis- revisit Link Centre and that it felt
accurately design stairs to fit into the complex geometry of a loft causing a minimum count (concession 2). Prices for different to how he remembers it.
disruption to existing living space. snooker, short mat bowls and line And whilst he is sorry that the arts
dancing and for the old time tea suite had been replaced by a gym
If you need more living space for a bedroom,
office, playroom or a place to relax, dance have more than doubled. and the sports hall capacity had
converted lofts make very attractive Some Haydon Wick residents been reduced because of the climb-
also reacted strongly to proposals ing hall, he believes the vision for
light extra rooms.
for big increases in the charge for the building is still there.
Designed correctly loft conversions are an
indoor bowls at the Oasis Leisure He said, "we had a very inclu-
environmentally friendly, cost effective way
of increasing living space. Centre and have negotiated a fa- sive dream. Our aim as a council in
vourable deal with the council by the 70s and 80s was to provide as
Freephone 0800 9178695 forming themselves into a group: much as possible to the highest
other users may not be able to quality for as many people as pos-
www.acenti.co.uk
achieve such relief. sible."