Mount Kelly Swim Centre has been shortlisted for the 2017 Local Authority Building Control (LABC) Building Excellence Awards

Following more than six years of negotiation, Mount Kelly an independent school in Tavistock, in partnership with Sport England, was successful in securing a 50m Olympic Legacy swimming pool following the 2012 London Olympics and Paralympics.

At the heart of the original bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic games in London was the sporting legacy, from grassroots to elite level across the country.

The new pool at Mount Kelly has further enabled the expansion of the school’s own swim programme, which has been running for more than 30 years, and is of international repute having produced medal winners at national, international, Commonwealth, Olympic and Paralympic level.

With 60% of the available time in the water given over to the community there has been a fantastic upsurge in enthusiasm for the sport. We have seen a dramatic increase in the numbers participating in community lane swimming and a great many primary schools visit each week. The pool has also delivered a significant increase in the numbers of children and adults participating in ‘Learn to Swim’ at both beginner and improver level. Swimming and triathlon clubs from around the country are using the 50m pool for training and for courses such as swimming teacher qualifications, life saving and sub-aqua.

The construction of the pool started in September 2015 and was completed one year later. A great many local firms were involved in the process, particularly Mitchell Architects of Plymouth and the main contractors, Devon Contractors Ltd. of Exeter.

Following an official opening ceremony in January this year, attended by HRH The Princess Royal, the project was nominated for a number of awards.

The new Mount Kelly Swim Centre has been shortlisted for the 2017 Local Authority Building Control (LABC) Building Excellence Awards which represents all local authority building control teams in England and Wales.

The project is also a shortlisted finalist in the 2017 Michelmores Property Awards which celebrate outstanding property and construction projects in Bristol, Devon, Somerset, Dorset and Cornwall.

Richard Smith, Commercial Director at Mount Kelly commented “This project has been transformational for Mount Kelly. It represented a significant investment on our part and would not have been possible without the support of Sport England. The actual construction took 12 months and required that we work very closely with the designing architects Mitchell Architects of Plymouth and the main contractors Devon Contractors Ltd. of Exeter. The result is a superb, state of the art, facility that is now benefiting a very wide audience. Of course it is extremely gratifying that the project has been recognised through these two prestigious award schemes.”

For further information please visit www.mountkelly.com or contact:

Vanessa Bowles on 01822 813193 : BowlesV@mountkelly.com

Richard Smith on 07792 492437 : SmithR@mountkelly.com