RICHARD Dunn sports centre is likely to be demolished in April - Bradford Council has revealed.

A public meeting to discuss the demolition is being held on Monday, and the Council says residents will be told that disruption will be kept to a minimum.

The centre shut its doors in November following the opening of the new, state of the art Sedbergh Leisure Centre a short distance away.

Bradford Council is proposing to submit a planning application to demolish the now redundant building in Odsal.

The site has been made secure, any hazardous materials that were in the building have already been removed by specialist contractors and the building made safe.

The Council says: "It is anticipated that when demolition consent is granted, work to bring down the empty 1970s building will start towards the end of April.

Amazing photos of the Richard Dunn sports centre in the 1980s - are you on them?

"The building will be taken down using specialist demolition contractors who will minimise any disruption to the immediate area. All the equipment used to demolish the building and to dispose of the rubble will access the site from either Manchester Road or Rooley Avenue and not through main residential areas.

"The areas required by the contractors to bring the building down safely will be off limits and be monitored by security to stop unauthorised access and anti-social behaviour."

Local councillors in the area have organised a drop in session at St Matthew’s Church on Carrbottom Road on Monday between noon and 8pm, for local residents to speak to council officers about the demolition of the building.

Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Regeneration Planning and Transport, said: “The demolition of the now empty Richard Dunn Sports Centre building is not expected to cause significant disruption to those living close by, but we want to reassure those who may have concerns, that everything will be done to make sure that the demolition is done as quickly and safely as possible and with little disruption.

“The new Sedbergh Leisure Centre is proving to be extremely popular and the redevelopment of the old Richard Dunn site provides an excellent opportunity to regenerate this area of the district.

“Once the site has been marketed and expressions of interest received, these will be assessed for their viability and sustainability and there will be plenty of opportunity for local people to take part in consultation on any final development.”