A North London campaign group is ‘alarmed’ at a council’s proposal to close a leisure and community centre within months, with a replacement not expected to open until 2030. Brent Council says a ‘new and improved’ leisure centre will be built in place of Bridge Park Community Centre in Stonebridge but it could take up to five years to deliver.
Meanwhile the proposed loss of Bridge Park continues to cause controversy due to its significance to London’s Black history. Bridge Park was once the largest Black-led community enterprise in Europe – housing business units, workshops, a sports hall and a theatre. Last year, Brent Council revealed that it is working alongside Stonebridge Real Estate Development Limited to redevelop the site as part of a wider £600m investment into the Hillside Corridor – including 1,000 homes, a hotel, park, and the new leisure centre.
Following a consultation late last year, residents highlighted the need for improvements to the leisure centre and community spaces but the council said the ‘poor condition’ of the existing building would require ‘at least £1.5m’ to restore it – which it doesn’t believe is ‘a sensible use of limited funding’. Residents have now been asked to take part in a new consultation, which proposes to shut the community centre as early as July 2025 so it can take place ‘in a managed way’.
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), the Harlesden People’s Community Council (HPCC) said: “We are alarmed by the planned closure of Bridge Park in July 2025 and concerned that the consultation process may not have reached those most impacted. We urge Brent’s Black community to participate in the Phase 2 survey to ensure your voices are heard.”
They added: “We also have significant concerns regarding the proposed new community hub. The lack of essential services such as an IT Centre, managed workspace, theatre, and music studio—currently offered at Bridge Park (often provided by a double decker bus operated by United Borders, which is separate from the leisure centre) —raises serious concerns. These are key resources that support local youth and help steer them away from crime. To exclude these facilities is to neglect the fundamental needs of the community.”
HPCC are campaigning to have Bridge Park included on the National Heritage List for England. They believe this designation would help secure the necessary funding to preserve the facility and keep it as ‘a vital resource for our community’.
The council expects the construction of the new leisure centre to begin in 2028 but, with it set to take around two years to complete, it may not be open to the public until 2030. Even then, this is all subject to planning permission and the council acknowledges there is ‘always a degree of uncertainty’ when it comes to timescales.
This would also mean that many, including gym goers, nursery users, business tenants, and users of the function rooms, meeting rooms and sports halls would need to find alternative facilities for at least the next five years. There are two Brent Council owned sports centres within a two mile radius of Bridge Park – Willesden Leisure Centre and Vale Farm – which residents could use.
However, an Equality Analysis concluded that the proposal ‘is likely to particularly affect people with a disability’ but claims the proposal is ‘objectively justified because of the legitimate aims the council is pursuing’. The consultation is scheduled to run until May 11 after which the council will outline the next steps.
Brent Council Leader, Cllr Muhammed Butt, said: “Bridge Park Leisure Centre is so much more than a building and we want to honour its history and build on its legacy for the next generation of residents. I want to thank residents who told us what they would like to see in a new and improved leisure centre at Bridge Park, including brand new leisure facilities, much needed new homes, a new jobs and skills hub and community and green spaces.”
He added: “Now that we have a clearer vision of the future, we want to work closely with the community to shape the future of leisure and community facilities at Bridge Park. This next phase of consultation is about gathering feedback on the proposed closure, and transition arrangements for residents.”
Grant Williams is a journalist and Local Democracy Reporter (LDR) for Reach PLC, reporting on local government, politics and community issues across London. As part of the Local Democracy Reporting Service, he has contributed to Harrow Online, covering council decisions, housing developments, transport, planning matters and stories affecting local communities across Harrow and Brent.
