Two leisure centres in Perth have been selected out of hundreds of buildings to be put forward for protected status as part of a national campaign.
Bell’s Sports Centre and Perth Leisure Pool could become listed buildings in the coming months following an application made to Historic Environment Scotland.
Bell’s has been heralded as a “centrepiece” in the city due to its “unique” timber dome.
While Perth Leisure Pool has been praised for its “futuristic design” upon completion in the 1980s and was deemed “at the forefront” of leisure centre developments going forward.
The submission of the Fair City facilities are among eight others handpicked out of hundreds across the UK as part of a sweeping campaign from heritage preservation enterprise Twentieth Century Society (C20).
The group launched its Leisure Centres Campaign at the start of October to “celebrate the architecture” of UK leisure centres and to protect the “most historic examples”.
The two Perth entrants are the only from Scotland in the list of 10 selected.
Oli Marshall, campaigns manager at Twentieth Century Society, said the initial response to the submissions has been “positive”.
“A lot of leisure centres across the country were worthy of consideration,” he explained.
“It was a large body of research undertaken and many of them had not really been explored like this before.
“The campaign narrowed it down to the 10 most outstanding examples, and two of them are in Perth.
“Perth Leisure Pool is an interesting design and speaks to a social heritage and a community identity.
“It is worth considering and won multiple awards and was well received when it was first built.
“Bell’s Sports Centre is different in style with its timber frame dome as it was the largest at the time.
“They can be Category A or B listed buildings but could take several months to be decided.
“There have been positive noises about them.
“It is important for these buildings to be considered as part of their local history.”
Designed by Scottish architect David Cockburn, Bell’s opened in 1968 and was billed as the largest laminated timber dome in Britain, its span only being surpassed by London’s Millennium Dome in 1999.
Despite comparable dome designs elsewhere – like Swindon’s Oasis and the Walker ‘Lightfoot’ Dome – Bell’s is unique in Scotland.
The structure contains 36 arch ribs supporting a 67-metre-long roof, 15 metres tall at its apex, culminating in a raised ventilation oculus.
This provides more than 3000m² of space for a running track and multi-use community sports, including tennis, badminton, basketball, gymnastics, indoor football and many more.
During construction, parts of the city came to a standstill as the giant arches for the dome started to arrive by road, with streets closed and a police escort provided.
The opening of the centre was delayed after a fire on February 18, 1968 badly damaged the structure, eventually opening in October of that year.
The centre has clocked up an estimated 12 million visitors since its opening 50 years ago and has recently seen its Coaching Hall transformed into a gymnasium amid some local consternation.
Perth Leisure Pool was designed by Faulkner-Browns Architects as a “regional tourist landmark” and opened in 1988 after four years of construction.
C20 says the design represents the “mature phase of post-war leisure centre construction”, applying lessons learned from the previous two decades.
The design - built on an equilateral triangular plan - was widely praised for its “futuristic design” at the forefront of leisure centre developments.
The building received an award from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in 1989, a Silver Award from the International Association for Sports and Leisure Facilities and commendations by the Perth Civic Trust and the Royal Fine Art Commission for Scotland.
Perth and Kinross councillors have approved a £90m budget for a new leisure centre to replace the existing pool, scheduled to open in 2027/28.
While the budget has been approved no planning proposals have yet been submitted and there are hopes the centre can still be saved.
The venue continues to attract 400,000 annual visits and C20 believes could be refurbished for “a fraction of the proposed cost of a replacement, with ample room on the wider site for further expansion if necessary”.
A spokesperson for Live Active Leisure said they were notified about the campaign and were awaiting further details.
A spokesperson for Historic Environment Scotland confirmed the submission and said it will likely be well into 2023 before a decision is made.
