Southwark celebrates new leisure centre at Canada Water reaching full height

16 June 2023

Cllr Catherine Rose at the Canada Water Leisure Centre site
Cllr Catherine Rose at the Canada Water Leisure Centre site

Building works have reached the roof level of what will be Southwark Council’s brand new leisure centre at Canada Water.

The new public leisure centre will open to residents in early 2025. In the meantime, residents can still enjoy all the leisure facilities offered by nearby Seven Islands Leisure Centre. At Canada Water, facilities will include:

  • an 8-lane 25m swimming pool
  • a learner pool
  • a four-court sports hall
  • a 150+ station gym
  • two dance studios (one of which includes space for soft play)
  • a spin studio

The new leisure centre’s ‘topping out’ comes ahead of the council taking back management of all leisure centres on 21 June 2023. This move will mean an injection of investment into upgrades across the borough’s leisure offer and greater accessibility to facilities for everyone within Southwark.  

Prioritising the health and wellbeing of residents also sits at the heart of Southwark Council and British Land’s plans to deliver a new town centre at Canada Water. Their masterplan will deliver 12 acres of new parks and squares. There will be a whole host of places for residents to meet, connect, and relax with up to one million sq ft occupied by shops, restaurants, entertainment, education and community space.

The new leisure centre sits on plot A2 which will provide over 180,000 sq ft of new workspace and is the first part of a thriving new high street – the first in a generation for London.

Easy access to everyone’s daily necessities, including green spaces, is the blueprint at Canada Water where the brand new leisure centre will offer a wide range of activities to help people get active.

Southwark councillors joined British Land and contractors Mace to celebrate the new leisure centre’s building milestone with a ceremony on Wednesday 14 June 2023.

Cllr Catherine Rose, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, Leisure and Parks, said: “It’s so exciting to be one step closer to residents enjoying the new state-of-the-art leisure centre at Canada Water. We’re delighted to celebrate this progress in the same month as we are taking back management of all our leisure centres to allow us to continue supporting more people to live healthier lives.

“We want everyone to be within easy reach of life’s essentials within thriving neighbourhoods, including green spaces, a choice of shops and services, and excellent health and fitness facilities. At Canada Water, this ambition is already becoming a reality.”

Page last updated: 20 June 2023

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