AS we stand and admire the bright and airy new entrance to Billingham Forum, it is hard to believe it is the same place.

“What has been done is fantastic,”

said Steve Chaytor, managing director of Tees Active, which runs the Forum.

“It will be so exciting to find out what people think.”

Until two years ago, the tired-looking 1969 building was a very popular venue, used by thousands of people, young and old.

But it was in desperate need of refurbishment, so Stockton Borough Council, with financial help from Tees Active, decided to bring it into the 21st Century.

Now the impressive entrance, with its splashes of colour and use of natural light, makes you immediately forget what used to stand in its place.

The two-year transformation will be officially complete when the doors open today and the first visitors arrive The refurbishment might have cost a bit more than the £14.5m that was initially set aside, but on visiting the leisure centre, there will probably be few people that won’t think it was worth it.

“We have added a number of new things but a lot of it is the same,” said Mr Chaytor. “The ice rink, the swimming pool and the theatre are all still here, but there is a much better use of space.

“I am really pleased with how it has turned out. It is great value for what we are getting and we have got a lovely, contemporary building, that is fit for at least another 30 years.

“Everything was still working when we closed but it was all tired and needed changing.”

The ice rink has a new pad, Nearly two years after it closed, the eagerly-awaited new-look Billingham Forum opens today following an £18.5m refurbishment. Dani Webb enjoyed a preview as the finishing touches were being put in place the swimming pool has been shortened to 25m to allow competitions to take place, leaving an extra smaller pool with a changeable depth, and the gym has doubled in size.

Other facilities, such as the changing areas, toilets, spectator areas, bowling green, fitness studios and play areas, have all been improved. A cafe has also been installed in the entrance.

There are also plans to create a new ice hockey team.

Tees Active has invested £7m into the project, so Mr Chaytor is obviously keen to see the newly-designed Forum take-off. “People are going to come from across the North-East to use the Forum,”

he said. “I think it will be a boost to Billingham, especially the town centre.

“It was very popular before it closed and now we have a lovely new venue. Hopefully, it is going to be even better now.

“Obviously, the ice rink is a big attraction because it is the only one in the area, with the nearest one in Whitley Bay. It has been missed, but we think there is something for everyone.

“I am sure this was a nice building in the Sixties, but there was a lot of space wasted.”

More than 40 jobs have been created. Staff who were relocated or made redundant when the Forum closed have been offered roles.

The refurbishment of Billingham Forum is unusual given the tough economic times, especially as some councils across the country are looking to close leisure centres.

Mr Chaytor is under no illusion that if the work was due to start now, it might not have happened.

“Looking back, it was good we got it off the ground when we did,” he said. “It would probably be a lot more difficult to afford now.

“Hopefully, it will help boost the regeneration of the town. Billingham is not a tourist destination, but people will travel to use the Forum and then spend money in the town.”

He said they have had to put up prices since it was last open, but they have been mindful of the financial pressures people are under.

“I think we have positioned ourselves well,” he said as we looked around the new gym.

“But it is still very reasonable, and I believe we will be possibly the cheapest ice rink in the country. I am very positive about the future of the centre.”

So, as the anticipation reaches its peak this morning, of all the questions Mr Chaytor expects to be asked over the next few days, he believes what has happened to the fish tank is going to be high on the list.

“So many people have asked me about the fish that used to be in the entrance,” he said. “Hopefully, once people see the facilities, they will forget that we have taken away the fish.”

And as for the fish – they have been donated to children’s autistic charity Daisy Chain, in Norton.