£2m investment plans for Hengrove

Plans for a major regeneration scheme at Hengrove Park in Bristol could be given a £2m boost by the city council.

The investment programme includes health, leisure, training and employment opportunities for the people of south Bristol.

The cabinet is due to meet on Thursday to consider making the investment which would take the scheme forward over the next four years.

Half the investment is expected to be recouped through government agencies.

Phase one of the Hengrove Park development will deliver a £45m South Bristol Community Hospital, a £29.7m leisure centre incorporating sports and swimming facilities, and a £29m South Bristol Skills Academy run by City of Bristol College.

New access links

The facilities would be linked via a new public open space.

The hospital is scheduled to open mid-2009, the Skills Academy in Autumn 2009 and the leisure centre in 2010.

The site also has potential to provide a 19,000 square metre European headquarters for Computershare, one of the largest employers in South Bristol.

Some 1,400 people are currently employed at the company's existing HQ at The Pavilions off Bedminster Down. Negotiations between the city council and the company are continuing.

All facilities on the site would be served by a new access road, a bus terminus to deliver improved public transport links, cycle facilities and car parking - all to be completed by autumn 2008.

Funding for the access infrastructure is expected to be confirmed by South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) later this year.