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Planning for Success The Lee Valley White Water Centre Story

Bringing you

Foreword

Did you know The centre is the only brand new London 2012 venue open to the public before the Games

With the clock ticking until the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the city, the country and everyone who has been hard at work bidding, planning, building and training are reaching a fever pitch of excitement and anticipation.

I include myself in this category. I cannot wait for this once in a lifetime celebration.

However, while many will see this summer as the moment they have been waiting for and the culmination of all their hard work, for me and Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, the Games and all the benefits they bring are just one more step in delivering our long term vision for the Lee Valley.

Our track record of owning and running successful sports venues – along with managing a 10,000 acre park – has been over 40 years in the making. It has resulted in us achieving our long held goal of creating a zone of sporting excellence in the Valley with a series of first rate sports venues through the 26 mile long park.

We create community focused, commercially driven attractions that are popular and well used, and our London 2012 legacy venues are no different.

Lee Valley Regional Park Authority will own and manage four London 2012 venues after the Games – Lee Valley VeloPark, Lee Valley Tennis Centre and Lee Valley Hockey Centre in the Olympic Park and Lee Valley White Water Centre to the north at Waltham Cross in Hertfordshire.

They are a key part of the ambition to create this zone of sporting excellence in the Lee Valley and of the park’s continued transformation into a world class visitor destination bringing together the best of nature, sport and discovery.

Of course, though all of these venues have been built for the Games, they have been designed for legacy and it is their long term, sustainable and financially viable future that has always been our number one priority.

ahead to what life will hold for the venue after the Games including hosting the Canoe Slalom World Championships in 2015.

We have always had a clear vision for all our sports venues and at Lee Valley White Water Centre this vision has been realised as a vibrant, world class sports venue combining facilities for the very best athletes with everything a family would want for a great day out.

I believe that the lessons of Lee Valley White Water Centre provide an unrivalled blueprint for anyone who hopes to take a venue through from conception to successful operation. It has been an exercise in effective partnerships, long term planning and commitment to a vision for a lasting, thriving legacy.

I would like to express our thanks to the partners and of course to the hugely talented and committed team here at the Authority, ably led by our Board, who have created this lasting legacy.

Shaun Dawson Chief Executive Lee Valley Regional Park Authority

Lee Valley White Water Centre was delivered by a range of partners, as well as a team of leading experts from the worlds of architecture, planning, design and sports development.

Partner Organisations Funders

I am proud to say in this respect that Lee Valley White Water Centre – the only brand new Olympic venue to open to the public before the Games – has thrived since it launched in April 2011.

Here we track the story of the centre, looking back to 1999 when the idea first emerged, to when it became a line in our business plan, to now, just weeks before the Games, with all income targets exceeded and two Schools Festivals successfully held. We also look 2

Partners

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Making the case

Lee Valley Regional Park is

In 1999, more than a decade before London would host the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Lee Valley Regional Park Authority and the sport’s National Governing Body, the British Canoe Union (BCU) first identified the potential for a new, white water canoe venue for this part of the country – to capitalise on the interest in the sport in London and the south east.

This plan, years in the making, was given extra drive and a firm deadline when in 2005 International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge announced, much to the nation’s delight, that London would host the 48th modern Olympic Games.

10,000 acres stretching from the River Thames into Essex and Hertfordshire

ee Valley Regional Park L attracts more than

4.5m visitors per year

The key steps in the story:

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1999

May 2003

2004

Lee Valley Regional Park Authority and BCU establish that a new white water attraction could sit on the Authority’s land as part of a range of regional venues such as Lee Valley Ice Centre and Lee Valley Riding Centre. For the BCU this is a crucial step to expanding participation in the sport, for the Authority this is part of the vision to create a new generation of outstanding sports venues which will attract visitors from far and wide.

The Government confirms that London will bid to host the 2012 Games. This galvanises the Authority and the BCU who develop a scheme and business model for a white water centre in the Lee Valley. Paris and Madrid are also in the running. There is much talk of the Games helping to revitalise London’s infrastructure, bring sport back to the school yard and regenerate east London, home to much of the Lee Valley.

As the bid becomes more detailed, plans for Lee Valley White Water Centre become part of London’s official proposal to the IOC.

July 2005 London wins the bid to host the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. This is the catalyst needed for Lee Valley White Water Centre to become a reality.

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From concept to completion

135 jobs created 800 hours volunteered £1.8m income generated 33,000 rafters Did you know 155,000 people have visited Lee Valley White Water Centre since it opened in April 2011

With the London 2012 authorities leading the charge to make the Games a reality, the timetable for Lee Valley White Water Centre was set and a world class team needed to be assembled. Strong partnerships with sporting bodies, funding organisations and, of course, London 2012 would be crucial.

The objective was clear from the start – as with all of Lee Valley Regional Park Authority’s venues, the new centre needed to be community focused and commercially driven, using revenue from corporate and consumer activity to drive sports development and outreach programmes, improving access to sport for a wide variety of groups.

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2007

The Lee Valley Regional Park Authority team visits Olympic venues in Sydney, Barcelona and a range of commercial white water centres to learn about what works and what doesn’t. Sydney in particular has a very successful white water centre but regrets not including a second, shorter course which would have broadened its appeal and helped young paddlers develop their skills.

Barcelona has a wonderful parkland setting, on the edge of an urban area – much like the future Lee Valley site.

The Authority and BCU decide to include a second course on the same site. This will eventually become the Legacy Loop – designed to improve the skills of canoeists and kayakers so that they can eventually graduate to the more demanding Olympic Standard Competition Course. This will help produce a new generation of champions and ensure the centre caters to the widest possible audience.

2006 FaulknerBrowns, one of the UK’s top sport and leisure practices, is appointed as the architect because of their reputation for environmentally sustainable design and world class sports facilities.

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2007-8 Lee Valley Regional Park Authority leads the charge to raise the £11m needed to maximise the £31m venue’s legacy potential. Primarily this is about constructing a second course and facilities building as part of the Olympic scheme. The Authority contributes £6m and creates a funding group with the East of England Development

Agency and Sport England. The potential is clear to everyone involved.

EEDA contribute £4m and Sport England £1m and the necessary funds are raised.

2008 Landscape architects Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates are brought onto the project along with white water specialists White Water Parks International and Indigo planning consultancy.

2009 Work starts on site. More than 150,000 cubic metres of earth is put in place to form the embankments and the landscaping – enough to fill the Royal Albert Hall.

2010 Construction continues as the aquifer is connected, the huge pumps and two conveyor belts are fitted. The two courses take shape with the facilities building sitting elegantly above them.

July 2010 The main course is flooded with water for the first time. Recruitment gets underway for the highly trained staff needed to run the centre and to provide a first rate customer experience. Staff include a former international kayaker and the captain of the men’s senior GB rafting team.

200 corporate groups 7,000 canoeists 35 international teams December 2010

May 2011

October 2011

The centre is the first new London 2012 venue to be completed by the Olympic Delivery Authority, a milestone marked by an event attended by HRH The Princess Royal, Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson and London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe.

The BCU holds its canoe slalom selection event ahead of the 2011 World Championships in front of crowds five times bigger than previous events.

By the end of the first season the team at Lee Valley White Water Centre has worked with 6,700 young people on three new education programmes, volunteers have dedicated 800 hours to sports development activities and 135 people have gained employment at the centre.

January 2011 The website goes live along with the marketing campaign. Rafting costs £49 for a half day session or groups of nine can charter a whole raft. Early take up is strong and excitement begins to mount.

March 2011 With the backing of Sebastian Coe, Hugh Robertson and Mayor of London Boris Johnson, the BCU and the Authority secure the first major championships for any London 2012 venue after the Games. The vote is close, but the International Canoe Federation awards the 2015 Canoe Slalom World Championships to Lee Valley White Water Centre.

April 2011 A week after winning the bid, Lee Valley White Water Centre launches its inaugural season on a beautiful sunny day. The occasion is marked by an event for international, national and specialist media and everyone who has played a part in its creation. The pavilion, café and terrace are put to good use as 250 people enjoy the spectacular setting and half of them “volunteer” for a trip down the rapids!

June 2011 Visitor numbers are much higher than anticipated. The team responds with mobile BBQs, extra sessions and by extending the first season well into the autumn. Corporate interest is strong – the centre creates custom made days out and team building events, making use of the purpose built seminar room, and creating a truly exciting day out.

July 2011 The first Schools Festival takes place giving 1,500 children from every London borough, Essex and Hertfordshire the chance to raft the Olympic Standard Competition Course for free. A statement of the Authority’s commitment to grassroots sporting legacy, this is to become an annual event. This is followed by the London Prepares Olympic Test Event which welcomes 175 athletes from 30 countries to the centre.

January 2012 New winter and spring season begins with thousands taking up the offer to brave the icy rapids.

March 2012 Second Schools Festival held with children from across the region again rafting for free. Locog starts major works to ready the site for the Games.

April 2012 The season ends with income double that predicted. The BCU holds its second canoe slalom selection event with crowds even larger than 2011 cheering on the hopefuls. The BOA announces the Team GB members at the centre. International athletes train.

September 2011 Revenue targets are hit two months early with a quarter of income coming from corporate days. Demand is so high that the Authority takes the decision to open early in 2012 for a special winter season. The strong focus on delivering first rate customer experience is rewarded with excellent visitor feedback for the whole rafting experience.

Did you know The centre’s Legacy Loop was added after a visit to Sydney where they don’t have one but wish they did!

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Lee Valley White Water Centre

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Did you know £1.8m income – nearly double that predicted – has been generated by Lee Valley White Water Centre’s first season

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4 4 1 Graceful pavilion Designed, along with the entire centre, by FaulknerBrowns including café, outdoor terrace, meeting space and offices all overlooking the courses.

2 Olympic Standard Competition Course 300m course with a 5.5m drop and grade four rapids used by elite athletes for training and for community and commercial rafting. Holes and big stoppers are perfect for rafting while fast moving shallower water is ideal for canoes and kayaks.

3 Legacy Loop 160m course with a 1.6m drop and grade three rapids. Perfect for those hoping to hone their canoeing skills and graduate up to the Olympic course, and for younger children who want to raft.

4 Spectator areas Plenty of viewpoints including a bridge over the rapids.

5 Lake The size of two football pitches – perfect for flat water canoeing, training and safety drills.

Hoist to assist participants with disabilities.

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6 Meeting rooms and office space Flexible space for corporate and private use with catering available on site, AV facilities and views across the site.

7 Entrances Entry is through River Lee Country Park next door or by road. Waltham Cross rail station is a 10 minute walk away with trains directly from London Liverpool Street in just 25 minutes.

8 Parking Parking is free and the site is 10 minutes from the M25 London orbital motorway and easily accessible from central London on the A10.

9 Landscaped areas Landscaped scenery provides a beautiful setting for the centre.

10 River Lee Country Park A 1,000 acre park which already attracts a million visitors a year and contains two Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

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Did you know 13,000 litres of water are pumped through the course every second, enough to fill an Olympic swimming pool in three minutes 9

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London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games From Sunday 29 July to Thursday 2 August 2012 Lee Valley White Water Centre will host the Olympic Canoe Slalom competition in front of 60,000 spectators from all over the world.

rapid blocs change the flow of the water

There are

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gates on the Olympic Standard Competition Course

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At the opening of the centre in April 2011, Olympic silver medallist David Florence spoke of his pride and excitement at having a world class venue both as his training base and, of course, as the backdrop to his next Olympic Games.

Team GB have been training at the centre since January 2011 in anticipation of the moment when the world’s eyes will be on them this summer.

International canoeists have also practiced on the rapids at the London Prepares test event in July 2011, and International Canoe Federation training programmes in autumn 2011 and spring 2012.

The 300m Olympic Standard Competition Course, flexible to fit the needs of both elite athletes and first timer rafters, will be in true challenge mode for the Games. Olympic silver medallist and Team GB member Campbell Walsh understands what is in store: “To navigate from the top to the bottom if you’re experienced is not a big deal but in terms of slalom, where you are trying to be precise and every second matters then it’s powerful water and very continuous.”

Meanwhile double Olympic champion, Slovakian Michal Martikan is very pleased with his sport’s new venue: “The course is perfect, very beautiful clean water and it’s very technical. I like it very much and it takes a lot of concentration.”

Team GB was announced at the centre in April and has strong medal potential. The canoe slalom team is made up of: David Florence Beijing 2008 silver medallist Richard Hounslow 2011 World Championships bronze medallist Lizzie Neave 2011 European Championships bronze medallist Etienne Stott 2011 World Championships bronze medallist Tim Baillie 2011 World Championships bronze medallist

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The Authority’s plans for the transformation include: • A new small facility between the Olympic Standard Competition Course and Legacy Loop with extra catering facilities, an outdoor classroom and shaded area.

• Extra car parking facilities to cater for greater visitor numbers.

• Expansion and refurbishment of changing room and toilet facilities.

• New viewing points around the course to improve spectator experience.

• Construction of a permanent regional headquarters for the British Canoe Union. ater, new commercial activities will L be added to the site including new adrenalin opportunities like high wire rope walking which will galvanise regeneration in the area by attracting more visitors and building the centres reputation.

Post Games legacy and transformation Looking beyond the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, all of the Authority’s plans for the centre are driven by its vision to create a community focused, commercially driven venue.

Public rafting, corporate days out and other opportunities such as naming rights and sponsorship will provide the income not only to create a financially viable operation but also to support sports development programmes and provide outreach and access for anyone who would like to try a white water sport. Lee Valley White Water Centre’s first season – contrary to expectations and similar centres – has created a surplus.

In fact, as a result of the centre’s great early success, further investment is now needed to help it keep pace with demand and further enhance the visitor offer. To capitalise on this, after London 2012 the centre will go through a transformation and Lee Valley Regional Park Authority has planned for around £4m of enhancement work – funded by the Authority, BCU and other organisations – to take place in late 2012 and 2013.

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But the transformation is not just physical. Working closely with Sport England and the British Canoe Union, the Authority will ensure that plans are in place with four clear objectives: • Increase the number of people taking part in physical activity.

• Provide the world-class facilities needed to bring on the next generation of champions.

• Create a lasting asset for local communities, London and the whole of the UK. • Use the centre’s viable and sustainable business model as a catalyst for future economic and tourism development in the area, creating a new visitor economy.

Lee Valley Regional Park Authority has been already been working with the BCU, Canoe England, UK Sport and the commercial paddlesport industry to help support and fund ‘Go Canoeing’ days at Lee Valley White Water Centre.

This is an initiative to provide taster sessions and coaching to encourage new people to take up paddlesports.

But as well as Olympians and beginners, the centre will cater for everyone in between. Like the Authority’s other sports venues, there will be an emphasis on club development and competition events for every level. There will also be a great deal on offer for canoeists with disabilities including structured and coached courses. The Authority has already committed to making the Lee Valley White Water Centre Schools Festival an annual event, inviting pupils from across the region to have a taste of the sport for free.

This inclusive approach is good for sport, good for society and good for business, driving participation and visitor numbers. It is also good for local communities; creating jobs and fuelling economic growth in the area.

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s chool groups visited Lee Valley White Water Centre in summer 2011

Did you know The Authority will also run Lee Valley VeloPark, Lee Valley Tennis Centre and Lee Valley Hockey Centre on the Olympic Park after the Games 13

Looking forward to 2015 and beyond In 2015 Lee Valley White Water Centre will host the Canoe Slalom World Championships. The successful bid – led by the British Canoe Union with backing from Lee Valley Regional Park Authority and local authorities – demonstrates the commitment of everyone involved to securing a bright future for the venue and the sport.

The World Championships – last held in the UK in 1995 – is almost five times bigger than the Olympic competition with 400 elite canoeists from 80 nations taking part in front of thousands of spectators.

Securing prestigious, international and national events like this is a key part of the London 2012 legacy and Lee Valley Regional Park Authority’s mission to generate genuine sporting and economic benefits from all its venues.

The Authority team at the centre, as well as the teams behind all of its other London 2012 legacy venues, will be working in partnership with the National Governing Bodies, sports organisations, national, regional and local government to attract more of the same in the future.

Raising the profile of the centre in this way is part of the Authority’s plan to establish Lee Valley White Water Centre as a national asset. This approach is a cornerstone of its business plan which aims to drive up income each year via a growing commercial and corporate offer, this in turn will be pumped straight back into sports and education development.

Community focused, commercially driven: a blueprint for the future Lee Valley White Water Centre’s success has been no accident. The centre has been designed and planned with a clear outcome in mind – a community focused, commercially driven, world-class sports venue. It has been born out of a long held ambition for the valley and had its legacy use designed in from the start.

This model for building viable, community focused and commercially driven sports venues is tried and tested.

Lee Valley’s existing centres are vibrant and inclusive places that use the power of elite sport to inspire sports participation at all levels – all underpinned by sound commercial activities to ensure the brightest possible future.

It has clearly benefitted from having an experienced and committed owner and operator at the helm, from conception Lee Valley Regional Park Authority has been focused on the long term, looking beyond London 2012 for a sustainable, viable legacy.

Through all of this work Lee Valley’s long-desired zone of sporting excellence is becoming a reality with award winning centres linked by beautiful parkland and a vision to provide national, regional and local sporting opportunities for as many people as possible long into the future.

This same formula is being applied to all of the facilities that will become Lee Valley Regional Park Authority legacy venues after the Games – Lee Valley VeloPark, Lee Valley Tennis Centre and Lee Valley Hockey Centre. All will cater to elite athletes, local communities and club-level participants balanced with opportunities such as corporate events which will bring revenues.

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canoeists from 80 nations

Three more Olympic venues After the Games, the Velodrome will form the heart of Lee Valley VeloPark which will be made up of the Olympic BMX Track, a new one mile road circuit and mountain bike trails. Café, bike hire and cycle workshop facilities will also be added. Working in partnership with British Cycling, Lee Valley Regional Park Authority has already put in place a five year plan to increase participation among schools and community groups.

Did you know Lee Valley VeloPark has just struck a deal with Manchester and Glasgow’s velodromes and British Cycling to make sure that more international sporting events come to the UK 14

The Canoe Slalom World Championships will involve

Based in the north of Olympic Park, Lee Valley Hockey Centre will comprise two world class pitches and a stadium with 3,000 permanent seats and capacity to go up to 15,000 temporarily. The Authority is in discussion with hockey clubs about using the site as a permanent home ground and with England Hockey about using it for regional, national and international events. The 2015 European Hockey Championships are to be held there, the first major international sporting event to take place on Olympic Park after the London 2012 Games.

Lee Valley Tennis Centre will share a clubhouse with Lee Valley Hockey Centre and will have four indoor and six outdoor acrylic tennis courts. The Authority is working with the Lawn Tennis Association and its charitable arm the Tennis Foundation to establish the centre as a strong London hub for community and disabled tennis.

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For more information about Lee Valley Regional Park Authority and its venues please contact

M1 WARE

Stephen Bromberg Head of Communications Lee Valley Regional Park Authority Myddelton House Bulls Cross, Enfield Middlesex EN2 9HG

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London

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Harlow

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Hoddesdon

01992 709 881 sbromberg@leevalleypark.org.uk

BROXBOURNE y Park

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Countr

www.leevalleypark.org.uk

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River Lee

@LeeValleyPark Published May 2012 WALTHAM CROSS

Waltham Abbey

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Key Sites

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1 Amwell Nature Reserve 2 Lee Valley Marina,

Enfield

Stanstead Abbotts

Loughton

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3 Rye Meads Nature Reserve

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4 Lee Valley Boat Centre

5 River Lee Country Park

Lee Valley Park Farms YHA London Lee Valley

6 Lee Valley White Water Centre

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7 Gunpowder Park

8 Lee Valley Campsite, Sewardstone

9 Lee Valley Athletics Centre

Lee Valley Camping

& Caravan Park, Edmonton

WALTHAMSTOW CENTRAL

TOTTENHAM HALE

Leyton

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10 Tottenham Marshes

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11 Lee Valley Marina, Springfield

13 WaterWorks Nature Reserve

and Golf Centre Lee Valley Riding Centre Lee Valley Ice Centre

14 Olympic Park:

Ilford

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12 Walthamstow and Leyton Marshes

Hackney BROXBOURNE

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Newham

Lee Valley VeloPark Lee Valley Hockey Lee Valley Tennis Centres

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16 Bow Creek Ecology Park

and East India Dock Basin

WALTHAM CROSS

…is 10,000 acres of parklands stretching from the River Thames through east and north London, and Essex to Ware in Hertfordshire. It is a mosaic of award-winning open spaces, sports venues, heritage sites, country parks, farms, golf courses, lake and riverside trails, campsites, marinas, angling and boating locations attracting more than 4.5 million visits a year

gold medallist and world champion Christine Ohuruogu. It is one of two UK Athletics High Performance Centres for Excellence for able bodied and disabled athletes. Opened in 2007, this has been the blueprint for Lee Valley Regional Park Authority’s London 2012 legacy venues, attracting schools, clubs, community groups and elite athletes

… has eight Green Flag winning open …is home to Lee Valley Athletics Centre, spaces, three Green Heritage the training base for half the GB Sites and four Highly Commended Athletics team, including Beijing 400m Quest accredited sports venues WALTHAMSTOW CENTRAL

…hosts 500 events and activities every year including sports events, birdwatching, sailing, walking tours, charity events and outdoor theatre performances …is funded in part by London’s 33 boroughs and Essex and Hertfordshire.

It is working to reduce its requirement for public money to ensure that at least half its income comes from other sources.

SteersMcGillanEves Design 01225 465546

Lee Valley Regional Park…