New target date for reopening Swindon's Oasis leisure centre revealed
A date has been set for the reopening of Swindon’s most iconic building.
The 50th anniversary of the opening of the Oasis Centre, January 1, 2026, is being used as a target by stakeholders to have it open to the public once again.
Both leaseholders Seven Capital and landowners Swindon Borough Council say they hope a renovated Oasis will be ready again by that date.
While an opening then would mean the centre will have been closed for a little over five years, it gives Seven Capital just 32 months to be able to admit paying customers again.
The suggestion was made by Conservative councillor Dale Heenan when he asked the leader of the council David Renard whether he felt it would be a good target to aim for.
Cllr Renard later said: “It is the ambition of the Conservative administration that the new Oasis should be open in time to celebrate the 50th anniversary on New Year’s day 2026.
“There is still a great deal of work to be done in conjunction with Historic England and the planners but we will continue to work closely with Seven Capital to seek to make it a reality.”
Group managing director at Seven Capital Damien Silver confirmed that date was also the company’s aim and said: “We are working closely with Swindon Borough Council to push forward with our plans for the redevelopment of the Oasis and share their ambitions to reopen in time for its 50th anniversary.”
Having asked the question Cllr Heena, now the cabinet member of organisation excellence, was pleased: “It is great that the council wants to see a new Oasis swimming pool open for families to enjoy for the 50th anniversary of the original opening.
“This is the first time a date is being talked about, and it is important to manage expectations because this is a development that is going to involve millions of pounds, and costs have tripled because of the listing status.
"We can all be excited to be working with Seven Capital, and everyone should all pull together to make the new Oasis happen”
Even the leader of the Labour opposition group Cllr Jim Robbins gave his cautious approval: “The Labour group has been keen to see the Oasis reopen as soon as possible and nothing has changed on that.
“While we would rather it happened faster and will do all we can in power to speed it up, a reopened Oasis being enjoyed by the people of Swindon on its anniversary will be great and clearly it would be devastating for the town to have the Oasis closed on such a key date.
“Too many of our heritage assets are currently shut, and the Labour group is committed to working closely with residents to get sustainable futures for them all.”
Credit: Aled Thomas, Local Democracy Reporter