Stratford Park Leisure Centre serves as a community hub for swimmers, sports clubs and gymgoers, all set within the surrounds of a picturesque country park.
The leisure centre has served the community for many years, with a swimming pool, modern gym, group exercise classes, a sports hall, squash courts, a sauna and steam room, meeting rooms and a cafe. While outside, there's an AstroTurf football pitch, tennis courts and an outdoor swimming pool.
But with sky-high energy bills and a cost to the environment too, Stroud District Council, as part of its environmental pledge, teamed up with the sustainability experts at Cotswold Energy Group to give the leisure centre a green overhaul.
In December 2023, the swimming pool was closed for just over a week as part of the major renovations to modernise the heating system.
The engineers at Stonehouse-based Cotswold Energy Group had a big list of improvements to complete.
They replaced the ageing gas boiler, the pool water heat exchanger and the air handling unit for the swimming pool area with a state-of-the-art advanced heating system.
This new system involves using a natural refrigerant heat pump to deliver energy-efficient heating across different areas of the building. The upgraded system is also powerful enough to supply heating and hot water to the Museum in the Park, which is also located within Stratford Park.
This upgrade provides the leisure centre with piping hot water for showers; warm and cosy heating in the changing rooms and other public areas around the centre; improves the air quality in the swimming pool area; and regulates the temperature of the water in the pool to make sure swimmers can enjoy their laps at the perfect temperature.
To help provide extra power to the new heating system and to enable the leisure centre to generate its own energy, Cotswold Energy Group also installed additional solar panels on the roof. These allow the centre to increase the amount of renewable energy it is producing and help to lower its electricity costs.
Engineers predict these panels will have an annual output of more than 240,000 kWh, which will significantly reduce the centre’s need for conventional energy sources.
The new heating system and the solar panels together are expected to reduce carbon emissions by a massive 740.32 tonnes each year — a big step towards the council's pledge to become carbon neutral by 2030.
Jon Bonnar, managing director of Cotswold Energy Group, which is part of SCIS Group, the UK’s largest eco-installer, said: 'Cotswold Energy Group is proud to contribute to the decarbonisation efforts of the Stroud district.
'Our innovative heating solutions are tailored to meet the unique requirements of each facility, delivering tangible environmental and cost-saving benefits. This project exemplifies our commitment to sustainable development and community well-being.'
As part of the region's decarbonisation strategy, £5 million was invested into the community's public facilities. The funding came from the government’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, with Stroud District Council receiving a £4.7 million grant, which it topped up by £700,000. The work was initiated by the government's Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and was delivered in partnership with Salix Finance.
Brendan Cleere, Stroud District Council director of place said: 'This project achieves a number of objectives in our Council Plan and 2030 Strategy: to be a carbon neutral and ecologically sound district by 2030 and invest in our leisure provision to make it fit for the future.'
This £5 million project started in summer 2023 and has included the installation of cutting-edge green technology at Stratford Park Leisure Centre, the Museum in the Park and The Pulse leisure centre in Dursley.
Work is expected to be completed by March 2024 and it is predicted that carbon emissions will be reduced by around 14,883 tonnes over 20 years.
