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Evening Standard
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Grant Williams

London Roller Derby's future thrown into doubt as date for closure of historic leisure centre is revealed

London Roller Derby members pictured in 2011 - (Getty Images)

The London Roller Derby could be left homeless after Brent Council approved plans to close an historic community and leisure centre at the end of next month.

The local authority said the decision was taken “with regret” but claimed repairing the existing building would be too costly and its current state poses a “high risk of failure of vital equipment”.

The closure of Bridge Park Community Centre has been set for July 31 after plans were given the green light at the latest meeting of Brent Council's Cabinet on Monday (June 16) - subject to approval by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

Last year, the council announced that the site would be redeveloped as part of a wider £600m investment in the area, which includes homes, a hotel, park, and the new leisure centre.

Bridge Park was once the largest Black-led community enterprise in Europe, where it was home to business units, workshops, a sports hall and a theatre.. However, the council has said that much of the centre is now “well beyond its expected life” and the risk of vital equipment failing “increases daily”.

When the plans were first proposed in 2024, the Harlesden People's Community Council (HPCC) launched the Save Bridge Park campaign, with an attempt to have the site added to the National Heritage List for England. The group is hoping to secure the necessary funding “to preserve the facility” and keep it as a “vital resource for [the] community”.

Historic England will review the application and compile a report for the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Lisa Nandy, to consider with a decision expected to be made this summer.

Bridge Park Community centre (Supplied)

HPCC member, Delaney Brown, said the claims that Bridge Park is not fit for purpose “overlooks its potential for renovation and modernisation” rather than demolition, and the structure “represents far more than its physical form; it is a testament to community-led resilience and progress”.

It's not just the centre's historical significance that has galvanised support for its restoration rather than demolition, either. Bridge Park is still providing facilities for community-focused organisations in the area and beyond.

It is most notably used by the London Roller Derby, a group which is “committed to empowering women, non-marginalised genders, and the LGBTQ+ community” through sport.

London Roller Derby has trained at Bridge Park every Sunday and Thursday for the last 20 years.

Speaking to the Cabinet using her roller derby 'alter ego' Vengeance, one member of the team had outlined their support for the Save Bridge Park campaign and urged councillors to vote against the plan.

Formed in 2006, London Roller Derby was the UK's first roller derby league and has been the “driving force” for growing its popularity across the UK and Europe, according to Vengeance.

She told the Cabinet that there are “world class athletes on your doorstep”, with skaters at the centre making up more than half of Team England, as well as players representing other countries including Scotland, Wales, West Indies, Finland, France, Greece, Spain and South Africa.

Vengeance said: “This is how fantastic our skaters are. We are going to be training our hearts out until the World Cup in July. Until you shut the doors, we are going to be training our hearts out in Bridge Park.”

Despite the agreement to close Bridge Park in July, the council's timeline suggests that work on the new leisure centre would not commence until September 2027 and only expected to open in 2030. Vengeance said the main problem is the lack of alternative training spaces and without the council's help finding somewhere the team “are homeless”.

She said: “Partly [the lack of alternative space] is why we have stayed loyal to Bridge Park, despite the fact that the price went up, we were left with freezing temperatures because of the broken heating system, and flooded halls when it rains meaning we can't skate at all.”

Whilst the council had the option of keeping the centre open longer, it ultimately felt that the “benefits of closure” will mean it will avoid additional costs for operating it with low usage numbers and avoid the “likelihood of emergency closures”.

In 2024/25, Bridge Park generated nearly £500,000 less than anticipated, according to council figures, and the local authority doesn't feel increasing fees and charges would plug this gap.

Brent Council's Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Public Health and Leisure, Cllr Neil Nerva, claimed that the council wants to work with the roller derby team "to ensure that there is an opportunity" to continue training at an alternative venue but suggested that the issues with the cold and flooding at the centre is why a new facility is needed.

Cllr Nerva said: "Bridge Park cannot go on as it is. [*] the building is not in good condition and it isn't a question of 'do we need to repair or completely rebuild?' The repair option is not really good value but it's also questionable whether it could even be achieved.

"In the short term, it is with regret that we have to close a facility at Bridge Park but in the long term it is about creating a new facility that is linked with the wider Hillside Corridor. [*] Everybody wants to see a new sports facility.

"There have been very specific comments made about the heritage of the site, in terms of its significance for people of colour in the Stonebridge area and that is why we want to ensure that between now and the opening - and even after the opening - that there is engagement and physical recognition of what Bridge Park has meant."

Cabinet Member for Housing and Residents Services, Cllr Flue Donnelly-Jackson, added that the council "value the history and heritage" of the site and are keen to "make sure the history is commemorated" at the new development.. She advised that the plaque on the current community leisure centre that marks the achievements of the late Leonard Johnson - the driving force behind the original centre - will be retained.

In terms of additional facilities, council documents show that the new leisure centre will provide a six-lane swimming pool, a 100-station gym - up from 39 stations - an activity space for soft play and a climbing wall, three exercise studios - up from one - a new cafe, a wet changing village, and a new adult education provision. However, it will see the reduction of a five-court sports hall down to four and the loss of commercial space.

If the plan gets the go ahead from Lisa Nandy later this summer, the council has outlined the timetable for the project, which includes completing the designs by October of this year before formally submitting a planning application in November. It is expected that this will be decided on by October 2026, with work commencing on site in September 2027.

Council Leader, Cllr Muhammed Butt, said: "It is always a tough decision for any landlord when they have to take a look at their assets and make decisions, even around a temporary closure, because the impact will always be on some of the users. We know there are people who value the space that they have there."

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