Constructing more than a leisure centre

Community Projects  |  

Construction may not be known for being kind to wildlife, but Slough is bucking a trend yet again with the most critter-friendly site ever.

The site of the town’s new leisure centre is now home to a host of local wildlife thanks to Slough Urban Renewal (SUR) and Morgan Sindall Construction who are building the new centre on behalf of the council.

The site, already a ‘considerate construction’ site to its neighbours has taken the massive step of being considerate to local creepy crawlies and cuter creatures as well by also building:

  • bug hotels
  • a pond
  • hedgehog houses
  • log piles for stag beetles
  • bird feeders and boxes
  • bat protection area

Nigel Franks, development manager for SUR, said: “I have never before seen a construction site where so much effort has been made to make space and suitable environments for local wildlife.

“The range of environments is encouraging a whole host of local creatures – more than anyone could expect to see on a massive development site like this one.”

Councillor Joginder Bal, cabinet member for leisure and environment, said: “The construction team is doing an excellent job on the build of the leisure centre and now also building new homes for some of the smaller, wilder parts of the Slough population!

“I look forward to seeing the amount of visitors to the wildlife habitats grow as the leisure centre continues to take shape.

“This is just one example of the added benefits to the council, to residents and to the environment of the town as a whole of our SUR partnership.”

Slough Urban Renewal (SUR) is currently working on numerous projects across the borough, from delivering new school extensions to creating new and improved leisure facilities and new housing developments.

Slough Urban Renewal is a 50:50 joint venture between Slough Borough Council and Morgan Sindall Investments Limited. Its purpose is to deliver ambitious objectives to transform the borough of Slough.