Leisure centre now officially excellent

Saxon Pool and Leisure Centre, which is managed by Stevenage Leisure on behalf of Central Beds Council, has passed the assessment from Sport England’s national quality scheme, Quest.

The Biggleswade centre was awarded a rating of Excellent following the completion of the two year process, comprising a mystery visit and a one day assessment in the first year, and a second mystery visit and two day assessment in the second year.

This puts it amongst the top centres in the UK for facility management.

Natalie Taylor, centre manager, said: “This is a fantastic achievement and a real team effort. Quest is much more than a tick box exercise; it is an ongoing programme to improve our facility for both staff and customers and a great way to demonstrate our achievements.”

Olympic gold and silver medallist Darren Campbell, one of Britain’s most successful and well-known male sprinters, is also the first Quest Ambassador. He said: “I would like to congratulate Saxon Pool and Leisure Centre on achieving Quest. I strongly believe that the whole community should have accessible, affordable and high quality sport and leisure facilities on their doorstep.

“In working hard to continuously improve their offering, Stevenage Leisure is doing its bit to encourage and inspire people to get more active.”