Agenda item

To consider a report of the Head of Scrutiny and Member Development on the consultation process being carried out by the City Development department as part of its review of Council Leisure Centres.

The Head of Scrutiny and Member Development submitted a report attaching the report of the Director of City Development which informed Members of the draft Vision for Leisure Centres presented to the Executive Board on 2^nd September 2008 and of the consultation process that was being carried out on the draft proposals.

The Chair welcomed to the meeting Councillor John Procter, Executive Board Member for Leisure, Jean Dent, Director of City Development and Martin Farrington, Acting Chief Recreation Officer, City Development.

The Acting Chief Recreation Officer presented the report and summarised for the Board the draft vision for the Council’s Leisure Centres as outlined in the 2^nd September 2008 report to the Executive Board.  He also summarised the public consultation exercise being undertaken to assess public opinion prior to recommendations being presented to the December Executive Board.

Members were advised that costs had risen significantly due in particular to the rise in energy prices.  The demand modelling work had also identified an apparent over provision of swimming pools in the city.  A managed solution was required which would make the best use of resources, shaping them into something sustainable for the long term and which would operate within the Council’s budget.

With regard to the consultation exercise, Members were advised that as broad a range of views as possible were being sought from a broad range of stake holders.  Individual groups were consulted at the request of, for instance, Area Management.

In brief summary the following issues were raised by Members:

·  Funding for school transport to swimming lessons at leisure centres.

·  The condition of leisure centres and swimming pools and how this affected usage.

·  The location of Council and private leisure centres – Officers agreed to provide Members with a map.

·  The closure of the bar and café at Pudsey Leisure Centre which made it less attractive to visit – Members were advised that these facilities had been heavily subsidised.  It was recognised that Pudsey Leisure Centre was in an excellent location but best use was currently not being made of this asset which would make it more sustainable.  Members were also advised that there was a marketing team tasked with promotion of sports and leisure facilities.

With regard to the consultation exercise, the following concerns were raised by Members:

·  The letter sent to Gipton Residents – A view was expressed by some Members that this letter had only been sent to the residents network, which was a self selecting group and that it would have been more useful if it had been sent to all the residents on the Gipton estate.  Officers responded that the costs of consulting every resident directly was prohibitive and not cost effective.  They did however consult with the Council’s Citizens Panel which has 1,000 residents representing a balanced cross section of the community.

·  The amount of effort put into tracking down and interviewing hard to reach people who had stopped using leisure centres, particularly in the Gipton area.

·  Whether the Beeston Hill and Holbeck Regeneration Partnership Board and the Primary Care Trust had been consulted.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That the proposals for consultation on the Draft Vision for Leisure Centres be noted.

(b)  That a map of Council and private leisure centres be supplied to Members.

(c)  That Members comments and concerns be noted.