THE manager of a state-of-the art leisure centre in Grange-over-Sands has taken up his post and is itching to dive in at the deep end - just as soon as the building is completed.

Standing on site among the noise and dust, the centre's general manager, Peter Halliwell, 44, could not look more at home, reports Beth Broomby.

"This is going to be a fantastic resource for the local community.

I can't wait to see it open and ready for the public," he said.

The centre - recently christened 'Berners' after nearby Berners Close - is on track to open early next year.

With a 20-station fitness unit, sauna, steam room and pool the facility, it looks set to be a crowd-pleaser and Mr Halliwell said there would be extra touches to give centre an edge including:

l A large glass wall at the deep end to give swimmers open views across the bay and a feeling of swimming outside.

l Open doors leading onto a deck where people can sunbathe in summer time.

l The option of an outdoor shower for people who want to hose themselves down al fresco.

"It is going to have a lot of exciting features - everything you would expect from a private club but the key difference is this resource is for the whole community.

I want to make it absolutely clear that this place will be open to everyone and we will make sure there are concessions to enable people to do that."

Mr Halliwell will drive the multi million pound pool forward through its crucial first months and beyond putting his organisation skills to the test.

The keen skier and mountain biker will oversee marketing, promotion, staff rotas and ensure the facility breaks even.

"Swimming pools are expensive, they tend to run at a loss.

Usually you have a local authority safety net behind you but this pool is completely independent.

It is going to be very tight but I am very confident we can make this place work financially.

We have a business plan and a lot of community support.

The amount of fund-raising done in this area to make this happen has been incredible."

The married father of one is no stranger to sweating it out at the sharp end and, over more than 20 years in the leisure business, he has worked on management teams in local authority-run pools in Sedgefield, Northamptonshire, Hexham and even Australia.

But one of his toughest tasks was to oversee the opening of Wentworth Leisure Centre in 1986 where he was responsible for staff selection, operations, policy and getting new users through the door - experience he hopes to draw on in Grange.

"It is an extraordinary centre.

My ambition is to see it become the social focal point for the community," he said.

l To help the pool stay afloat financially, management plan to assemble a team of volunteers to pad out the full-time staff structure.

Full training will be given and volunteers can offer as little as an hour of their time a week.

For further details, contact Mr Halliwell on 015395-35624.