Commonwealth Games 2022 swim centre in Smethwick gets go-ahead

Artists' impressions of the centre were revealed last year

A £60m aquatic centre which will host events for the 2022 Commonwealth Games has been given the final go-ahead.

Birmingham won the bid to host the Games in December, and the centre in Smethwick, Sandwell, will be among host sites.

It had been granted planning approval, but was given final permission at a council meeting on Tuesday.

Building work on the centre, in Londonderry Playing Fields, will start later this year.

Officials aim to open it in 2021 and say it will host all swimming and diving events in the Games.

It will feature a 50m-long (164ft) Olympic-sized swimming pool, a 25m (82ft) diving pool and 1,000 permanent spectator seats, with more temporary seats for the 2022 Games.

It will also have gyms, activity studios, a sports hall, an indoor cycling studio and also spring boards and a foam pit to allow divers to work on their techniques on dry land.

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When Sandwell Council approved the plans it said the centre would contribute to residents' quality of life after the Games.

But protesters had claimed they would lose green space and it would lead to more congestion.

It will also mean the closure of Smethwick Baths in Thimblemill Road and a pool in Langley, which was met with a mixed reaction on the BBC Midlands Facebook page.

Council leader Steve Trow said it had already earmarked some funds to replace outdated leisure facilities, with the new centre to provide even better services for Sandwell and the wider West Midlands.

"It is not just about the two weeks of the games, it is about the whole life centre of the centre, which will add enormously to the community," the councillor said.