A new car park for Kirkby Leisure Centre is moving a step closer as work to demolish the Festival Hall leisure centre has started.

The demolition by Ashfield District Council will last for around 12 weeks.

The new car park on Hodgkinson Road will have spaces for 95 cars, including disabled parking and six electric charging points. It will also have ten cycle hoops and lockable cycle storage. It is expected the car park will be completed by Spring 2023.

Festival Hall was opened in the 1930s and has been a focal point for leisure and sport events in the town for the last 80 years. A public consultation was carried out in August 2016 on the future transformation of the town’s leisure services, which the council said resulted in a strong message of support from the public for investment in new sport and leisure facilities.

Work on the new Kirkby Leisure Centre started in December 2020 and it officially opened in August 2022 as part of the council’s £15.5m investment to transform leisure facilities in Kirkby, including the addition of a new swimming pool.

Robert Docherty, director for Place and Communities at the council, said: “The work to create the new car park at Kirkby Leisure Centre will mark the completion of this superb facility. Thousands of people have already visited the centre since its opening, and we hope many more will visit when the parking facilities are complete. We have been assured that disruption for residents will be as minimal as possible.”