Magnet Leisure Centre redevelopment expected to generate £38m

Redevelopment of the Magnet Leisure Centre could bring the Royal Borough a windfall of £38m, town hall chiefs have claimed.

The prediction was revealed at a meeting of the council’s Cabinet Regeneration Subcommittee on Tuesday.

This money would be more than enough to cover the expected £32.8m cost of a new centre at Braywick, which would have a lifespan of 40 years.

Responding to a question from council leader Cllr Simon Dudley (Con, Maidenhead Riverside) on what measures were being taken to ensure costs don’t ‘spiral out of control’, Cllr MJ Saunders (Con, Bisham and Cookham), cabinet member for finance was keen to show all bases had been covered.

“The financial parameters we set were we should be seeking to ensure the money invested in the new centre should be covered by the capital coming from the redevelopment of the current site,” he said.

“We expect that it should generate capital receipts of up to £38m.”