Highlight Active Wellbeing Hub is perfectly positioned to serve the surrounding community. Situated next to the marina, this flagship project forms part of Hartlepool’s waterfront regeneration strategy.
The centre replaces the ageing Mill House Leisure Centre, which opened in 1972, with a modern and fully accessible wellbeing facility.
The iconic building grows in height from west to east, offering sweeping views across waterfront and Hartlepool marina. It features three pools, water slides, child friendly play zones and a movable pool floor to allow the depth to be altered.
62,000tiles laid across the pools and changing rooms
19local people employed on site
534 apprenticeship weeks completed
1,005students supported with careers guidance
420volunteering hours delivered within the local community
56work experience weeks delivered to students and young people aged 16 and over
An extensive exercise area accommodates a 100-station gym, two interconnecting fitness studios and a spin studio.
Visitors can sit back and relax in the café, while experiencing incredible views of the waterfront. There is also a soft play area for families to enjoy.
The building also includes four NHS consultation suites, designed to support health and wellbeing in the community.
Sustainability has been embedded into the design, with climate net zero and operational efficiency taking priority.
The building’s location in an exposed waterfront location, surrounded on three sides by water, offered unique construction challenges for the team. Harnessing highly skilled engineering and technical expertise, the team successfully completed groundworks, that included 33 steel sheet piles and 476 driven precast concrete piles to form a cantilever cofferdam.
£5.7m of social value has been generated throughout the lifetime of the project, this includes spending over £21m with local supply chain partners, providing employment for 19 local people.
