Bordering the River Thames in Fulham, West London and set in 15 hectares of grounds, the Hurlingham Club is a private members club of international renown. The Club offers a wide range of sporting and social opportunities — it has over 40 tennis courts, croquet and bowling lawns, cricket in the summer, golf in winter, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, squash and fitness areas.
The outdoor pool, one of the most popular facilities at the Club, had reached the end of its useful life. LUC provided planning advice on the construction of a replacement outdoor swimming pool, children’s pool and associated changing rooms, café and sunbathing facilities within the setting of the Club’s grounds.
The Club is located adjacent to the River Thames in Metropolitan Open Land. It is within a Conservation Area and there are several listed buildings on the site. The Club is also home to numerous fine trees, which support important bat colonies.
Due to the sensitive nature of the site, the project involved extensive pre-application discussions with the planning authority (Hammersmith and Fulham), the Greater London Authority, statutory and non-statutory consultees, plus local interest groups and residents. LUC worked closely with Club Officials and the appointed architect, David Morley Associates, to co-ordinate the submission of the planning application for the outdoor swimming pool, which involved assembling all supporting material. Particular attention had to be paid to finding sustainable energy sources for the pool plant.
This scheme was granted planning and conservation area consents in November 2009, and LUC subsequently discharged a range of planning conditions and other consents, and assisted in the production of relevant material to meet consenting requirements. The pool was opened for use in August 2011.
