A LEISURE centre is set to be overhauled with a £1.15m cash injection.

Reading Borough Council announced on Tuesday that Rivermead Leisure Centre will be revamped with a new outdoor synthetic turf pitch and revamped swimming changing rooms.

New boilers will also be installed and work is due to begin in the summer in time for the new football season in September, while the changing rooms will be revamped over Christmas to minimise disruption to swimmers.

Reading’s culture, sport and consumer services leader, Cllr Paul Gittings, said: “This is a major investment. The outdoor synthetic pitch is being replaced so that it can be used for both hockey and football bookings and the new boilers will ensure the effective and consistent heating of the pool and the rest of the building.

“The renovation of the swimming changing rooms is also important and there will be an increased capacity, especially in the number of family cubicles, which is what users have told us they want to see.

“We are also actively looking at how we might improve other sports and leisure buildings and facilities across the borough. Some of these facilities are dated and we are actively investigating options for investment.

“The council’s leisure facilities are essential in ensuring that modern, quality sport facilities are available to everyone. The investment in sports and leisure facilities like Rivermead is also an investment in people’s health and wellbeing.”

The council is working in partnership with GLL and plans are expected to be rubber-stamped at a meeting of the housing, neighbourhoods and leisure committee on Tuesday.

The project will be funded by Reading Borough Council’s approved capital programme and Rivermead partners Greenwich Leisure Ltd (GLL) would be responsible for delivering work at the Richfield Avenue centre.

GLL general manager Warren Higgins added: “As the UK’s largest charitable social enterprise leisure provider, we are committed to encouraging local people to become more active, and our aim is to deliver top quality, affordable leisure services for them to be able to do so.”