We’re proud to play our part in the regeneration of Wokingham. The new flagship centre brings together state-of-the-art leisure, fitness, community and library facilities, in one of the UK’s most energy efficient leisure centres.
Carnival Hub
- Client: Wokingham Borough Council
- Location: Wokingham
Services
- Architecture
- Industrialised construction
- Interior design
- Landscape architecture
Designing a community focal point
We designed Carnival Hub to meet the evolving needs of the local community and visitors. Forming a significant part of the final phase of the Wokingham town centre regeneration – our brief was to create a highly sustainable, community-led mixed-use development, which also includes 55 apartments designed and delivered by our team.
The new hub replaces an aging 1990s building that was in need of constant repair. What was a dark, oppressive and out-of-date environment, is now an appealing, light and airy space, accessible to all. An outstanding new leisure facility featuring two pools, gym, fitness studios, specialist cycling room, a spa, health and wellbeing centre, a four-court sports hall, viewing gallery and cafe. The hub is also home to the town’s public library, and the sports hall converts to a 400-seat performance space for music and theatre.
Social value
Carnival Hub is the result of years of consultations with local residents and businesses to ensure that it aligns with what they hope to see in a new community leisure facility.
Accessibility and inclusivity were key drivers for our design team, alongside being highly sustainable. The hub provides a community-enhancing space for people of all ages, including spa facilities for all members and mixed-use halls which are intended to be used for performance as well as sporting events.
Our landscape team designed a fabulous public realm which integrates the hub with the wider site and provides a varied, accessible outdoor space.
Sustainability
We worked closely with our client to support their ambition to reduce carbon emissions, maximise energy efficiency and lower operating costs. Carnival Hub is one of the UK’s most energy-efficient leisure centres and driving vastly improved performance across the site, which has achieved massive carbon reductions of 75% on the previous build, surpassing government targets.
As well as an efficient design, the in-use performance of the building is reviewed using data collected by a building monitoring system (BMS). This system provides monthly updates on the building’s energy usage and provides live carbon emissions, as a building performance metric for the operators and other stakeholders throughout the lifecycle of the building.
Project data
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75% carbon reductions compared to previous build
This is a really exciting moment for the residents of Wokingham Borough, who have been waiting patiently for this state of the art leisure facility to open its door in the heart of the town. The new centre has something for everyone regardless of your age or fitness levels; and I hope it will exceed everyone’s expectations.
Cllr Ian Shenton Executive Member for Environment, Sport and Leisure, Wokingham Borough Council
State of the art swimming facilities
A six-lane 25m pool – with raised spectator seating along its entire length – as well as a teaching pool with moveable depth floor and a children’s splash pad with fountains and water jets. Designed in line with Sport England standards, the pools represent a transformational upgrade for both the local community and Wokingham’s swimming training and competition facilities.
It’s exciting to see this fantastic project come to life. A major design objective for us was to deliver an exceptional, sustainable and modern facility for residents and visitors to enjoy for years to come. The centre provides an enhanced offering and a welcoming environment where people can have fun, recharge, and where sporting fans can train and compete. Importantly, it is designed with flexibility in mind to accommodate the wide range of needs and activities of the local area.
Simon Chenery Director
