Parkgate Community Leisure Centre, Parkgate, Rosyth

Parkgate Community Leisure Centre, Rosyth

This recreational institute was designed by James Scobie for the Carnegie Dunfermline Trust and built between 1924 and 1926. It is a single-storey building with basement, planned on an I-shaped footprint and executed in Free Renaissance style.

The building is constructed of red brick with harled surfaces at upper level (except to dormer heads) and sandstone ashlar dressings. A flush band course runs at lower transom level. Ashlar quoins mark the arrises of the red brickwork, and flush ashlar architraves with chamfered reveals are employed to all elevations except the rear (east) elevation, which features non-chamfered reveals to the bow windows on the south side. Gables are coped.

The principal (west) elevation presents a symmetrical arrangement dominated by a central entrance reached by late 20th century concrete steps and ramp. The entrance is surmounted by a stepped consoled segmental pediment inscribed 'CARNEGIE DUNFERMLINE TRUST - ROSYTH INSTITUTE' and set within a raised pediment-like shouldered gable bearing a geometrical motif at the apex. The doorway comprises a panelled two-leaf timber door with rectangular fanlight. On either side are transomed bipartites set within slightly projecting full-height ashlar panels machicolated at the apex. The flanking bays are surmounted by plain balustrades at eaves and contain mullioned and transomed sexpartite windows. Two-bay sections project to either side, each with a 12-light mullioned and transomed window beneath a pediment-like breaking-eaves shouldered dormerhead with coping raised over scrolled skewputts.

The south elevation displays a symmetrical eight-bay arrangement. Six central bays feature closely-spaced mullioned and transomed quadripartites. The outer flanking bays contain mullioned and transomed ten-light bow windows, each set beneath a raised pediment-like shouldered gable with geometrical motif at the apex.

The north elevation presents a near-symmetrical seven-bay arrangement. Steps ascend to an entrance in the second bay from the left, flanked by wide pilaster strips rising to the base of a raised pediment-like shouldered gable with geometrical motif at the apex. The doorway consists of a two-leaf timber door with rectangular fanlight. Mullioned and transomed nine-light windows with pediment-like breaking-eaves shouldered dormerheads occupy the fourth and sixth bays. Mullioned and transomed sexpartites appear in alternate bays and the outer flanking ones. Blocked mullioned bipartites to the basement are absent only at the entrance bay.

The east elevation contains a semicircular-plan section with brick parapet projecting at the centre, which features three large regularly disposed mullioned and transomed round-arched sexpartites. Flanking entrances set back comprise two-leaf panelled timber doors. Flanking outer projecting sections display irregularly disposed mullioned and transomed quadripartites.

The windows are predominantly timber casements. The roof features grey slate piended sections with terracotta finials at ridge ends. Pairs of louvred vents of cupola design with timber finials crown the ridges of the north and south sections. A replacement glazed dome covers the parapetted semicircular-plan flat-roofed section to the east. Corniced semi-wallhead stacks appear to flanking projecting sections on the east and west elevations, with two wallhead stacks to the east sections; a corniced ridge stack is present to the south; all feature circular cans. Many original cast-iron rainwater goods survive, with some downpipes stamped '1924' and '1925'.

Internally, the plan remains largely unaltered although doors have been replaced. Original green and brown glazed tiles line the vestibule at the main entrance and the hall and lobby opening from it. The main hall features rounded timber ceiling trusses. In the semicircular-sided room, pilasters set back to the walls on both sides of the dome and flanking lightwells are accompanied by a folding timber screen with glazed upper panels. The snooker room retains a panelled timber dado and fixed seating. The games room displays a panelled timber dado and a geometric red brick fireplace with stone dressings incorporating a band of lozenge motifs.