Dartford residents have wasted no time trying out the facilities at the Borough Council’s new Fairfield sport and leisure centre after its formal opening on Saturday.
The Mayor and Leader of Dartford Borough Council cut the ribbon in front of a queue of swimmers and gym users keen to be among the first to see inside. The ceremony saw the new Fairfield formally handed over to Tom Carter representing the centre’s new operators Places for People Leisure.
The Council invested £12m in the facility and centre users will now be able to take a dip in the completely refurbished main or teaching pools, enjoy a poolside sauna, use the new diving boards, join a dance or exercise class in the new studios and play a wide variety of different sports in the brand new multi-use sports hall. The sports hall can be used for a range of different activities including badminton, football, basketball and trampolining.
Visitors will be able to get in shape in the well-equipped 95-station gym featuring the very latest equipment from Matrix, Precor, Gym Kit uk and Escape Fitness, designed to maximise the benefits of their workout, whatever their goals might be.
After enjoying a work out or swim, visitors will then be able to kick back and relax in the poolside sauna, or the new café area by the open reception area. 
Councillor Jeremy Kite, Leader of Dartford Borough Council, said, “We knew the residents of Dartford were very excited about the opening of the new Fairfield and it was great to see the centre so busy this weekend. Since the former centre’s closure in 2014, we’ve been hard at work with our partners Willmott Dixon and PfPL to create a new leisure facility which is modern, well-designed and ready for a whole new generation of visitors to enjoy. We love the smart new feel to the place and hope they do too!”
Tom Goodhand, PfPL Regional Director, commented on the opening of the centre: “Places for People are delighted that Fairfield Leisure Centre has opened and it has been the result of a great team effort led by Dartford Borough Council. We are proud to work closely with the Council and are confident that the state of the art facilities at Fairfield will be very well received by the local community. Our goal here at PfPL is to get people exercising more and help them increase their activity levels. We have the expertise and the knowledge to continue to make projects such as Fairfield a success.”
Places for People Leisure currently partners 35 local authorities, managing 113 leisure centres across England. Its sites attract over 30 million visits every year and in the past seven years the award winning organisation has built 13 new leisure facilities.
For more information about the new Fairfield visit www.fairfieldleisure.org