Ladywell Leisure Centre will close once Lewisham’s new leisure centre is complete.
Pic: Wikimedia Commons
The closing of one of Lewisham’s leisure centres may see the borough getting something that it hasn’t had for many years — its own cinema.
Ladywell Leisure Centre will close as soon as soon as the new Glass Mill Leisure Centre on Loampit Vale opens in a few weeks. However, Lewisham Council has said that no firm decision on the site’s future usage has been made.
Max Calò, a member of local film group Hither Green Hall, said he saw the leisure centre’s closing as an opportunity to build a cinema at the borough’s historical middle between Catford and Lewisham Centre:
“The site of the leisure centre is highly appropriate. It is on a main road with a lot of busses passing through. It is very large and is about to go on the market.”
Together with other members of Hither Green Hall, Calò started an online petition to push for the cinema at the site. The petition was later spotted by Curzon Cinemas, who run six arthouse cinemas in the capital and another venue in Cheshire. Calò said Curzon then contacted Hither Green Hall with interest in redeveloping the site as a cinema, and the two parties then held a private meeting with members of Lewisham Council to discuss options.
Michael Harris, Labour Councillor for Lewisham Central, said that working with Curzon was something the borough was keen to progress:
“I’ve arranged a number of meetings between Curzon Cinemas, the Mayor, local residents and our planning department to discuss whether we can bring a high-end cinema to our borough. Local residents and groups such as Hither Green Hall are incredibly enthusiastic about the possibility of a new cinema and I believe it will help continue Lewisham’s regeneration.”
The Council had said in an earlier statement that they prefer plans favouring the site being redeveloped to offer a mix of housing and retail space. Cllr Harris though, said that the local plan for the area has been amended to include a cinema:
“Lewisham’s development plans make specific reference to the council considering a cinema for the Ladywell Leisure Centre site, so when the brand new Glass Mill centre opens in the coming weeks, this will need to be looked at.”
Harris also said that this only means the idea of building a cinema at the site must be considered, and it is not a certainty.
Lewisham and Waltham Forest are the only two London boroughs that don’t have a cinema within their boundaries. Richard Shaw, Chair of Hither Green Hall, said bringing a cinema back to Lewisham could help revive the borough’s economy:
“If there was a cinema here people would… come out of the cinema, go to a bar, a pub, a restaurant and spend more money here. At the moment that money is being spent in other boroughs. Lewisham is concentrating on housing, but all those people then have nowhere to go in the borough. If there was a cinema here, it then helps the local business, because those local businesses will profit from the extra traffic that is being brought in….”
Shaw also said that building a cinema specifically at the Ladywell site will make the area a better place to live.
“If that just becomes another set of flats, there’s just going to be people going in, closing their doors and not looking out any more,” he said. “But if there’s a cinema there’s people coming and going all the time — it’s going to be a safer area to be in and that’s what we need in Lewisham.”
Detailed plans for the site of Ladywell Leisure Centre will be brought before the Mayor of Lewisham in the summer.
Curzon Cinemas was unable to be reached for comment at this time.
Fingers crossed, this would be just what the area needs.
Please don’t be stupid Lewisham Council. A cinema would bring people to the area and mean they spend money here. Housing is not what residents want. Nor are more junk shops, betting shops, chicken shops etc. An independent cinema would really help lift the area.
That would be wonderful – just what Lewisham needs. Surely there are enough shops
in the area already.
It might be possible to re-use the existing building, adapt / convert it to cinema use,
that would be the ecologically responsible thing to do, and would save money.
A bit sad that the leisure centre has closed after all this time but a Cinema in its place would be great Lewisham has not been the same since the Odeon and Studio 6&7 cinemas were closed.
Please not another Kebab or Fried Chicken shop whatever they decide to build.
I really hope they do agree to the building of a cinema. I think it would be a really positive thing for the local community and the location is ideal. It might also encourage other businesses to open in the vacant spaces near the cinema which have been offered as ‘to let’ for a while now. Fingers crossed!
Having used the replacement Glassmill pool a few times I think there is a strong argument for retaining Ladywell as a pool. The Glassmill pool is only 3/4 length of the Ladywell one and located in the very centre of the rapidly expanding Lewisham centre. Even with very few of the new flats occupied and only a small proportion of schools closed for Summer the pool was filled to (or maybe beyond) capacity for the lunch-time lane swim today and within half an hour of opening the general swim the staff were turning away customers. Quite right too as ond could barely see the water. The facility is clearly totally inadequate for the needs of the area.
An arthouse cinema would be fantastic for the area. Please no more shops/housing Lewisham council! It’s london and time Lewisham built on it’s cultural capital. It has been proven again and again that a large cultural hub kick starts regeneration. Give us somewhere to go other than chicken, pound and betting shops. Look at greenwich picture house which includes a resturant and bar, or consider an art gallery. Good luck Curzon! There are plenty of punters in the surrounding area!
Lewisham has had 3 cinemas in the pass they closed down they was not making no money when the last one in catford closed it was they empty for years before a developer got it stop wasting public money
I think a ice skating ring would get more use
This kind of thing makes me sooo upset!….What on earth are is the council thinking, and what are the Lewisham central Councillors being paid for!…Lewisham is becoming prolific at allowing empty buildings around the borough to sit empty, and dilapidated for years being tied up in endless discussions or worse still placing decisions about the buildings into the hands of stupid narrow minded planning department system and their partners in crime the dreaded despots known as ‘conservation officers’ for more yeeaaars! I know I already sound completely negative but I do love Lewisham (though not its unproductive council), and it must be said that the ladywell end of Lewisham looks like a complete dump. buildings like The Old Snooker Hall (on the corner of Courthill road and Lewisham High street) is actually now a squat!(we see squatters going in and out all the time and the building itself looks horrid around the back and at the front, dread to think what the railway side must be like) which i’m sure is doing no favours to the house prices and generally ambiance for the neighboring houses. The Playtower building also looks like a dive (also right in the center of Ladywell next to the old police station)and has been left empty for far too many years, and now we have the old leisure center which im sure will also sit there doing nothing for foreseeable future. Stupid Stupid council. Ladywell is still pretty close to the town centre and a boroughs town center should never be left with empty run down buildings all are signs of a weak economy and an even weaker council. I wish someone in the council would have the Balls to tell the planners and conservation officers to shut up and allow private investors (who wish to invest in my borough) to use their money to give the empty buildings a face lift, be it a cinema good quality community buildings (we do need more of those) or whatever else that helps Lewisham.
We will follow up today so watch our twitter feed
Lewisham Council, please, please start doing something constructive to make our town center more attractive for people who live here and visitors. No more pound shops, no more take-aways, no more betting shops and no more pay day lenders.
I’ve lived in Lewisham for over 10 years and can count on 1 hand the number of times I’ve visited a cafe or restaurant here. At the moment there is nothing to make me want to stay in Lewisham. This is a shame, as I would like to support my local economy. Blackheath – yes. Greenwich – yes, Canary Wharf – yes, East Dulwich – yes. These are all places I’d prefer to go on evenings and weekends ahead of Lewisham. The council and planning department need to LEAD Lewisham to make it a more desirable place to live and work.
We’re finally seeing some positive change for the town centre with the the regeneration that has started around the DLR station. A new Arthouse Cinema would be a fantastic move in the right direction for the halfway point between Lewisham and Catford. A good cinema, could be the trigger to attract new creative small businesses. The arrival of creative, artistic individuals and small business can be the harbinger of wider scale regeneration. Lewisham has the potential. We have some beautiful residential pockets and parks. We just need an overhaul of our town centre. A new cinema in place of Ladywell Leisure Centre is a good idea. Come on Lewisham Council. Do the right thing:-)
When we lost the wonderful cinema in Lewisham where the Beatles and other talented artist performed and the cinema was great but its gone what we need is another cinema please no more shops weve plenty now.