Issue - meetings

Community use agreements with the Sigma Trust for the two Joint Use Sports Facilities at Brightlingsea and Harwich Sports Centres are due to expire on 31 December 2021. This report sets out options for consideration by Cabinet and a recommendation on how to proceed.

RESOLVED that Cabinet –

(a)    notes that the Joint Use Agreements between the Council and the Sigma Trust for the Harwich and Brightlingsea Sports Centres end on 31 December 2021;

(b)     agrees to the provision of transitional support from existing resources, for up to three months, to extend the community use of the facilities where possible;

(c)     invites representatives from the relevant Town Councils and the Sigma Trust to join an engagement group to meet during the transition period to work through the operations of providing community use from the facilities;

(d)     considers the development of the leisure and sports offer across the District through the Corporate Plan and emerging strategies; and

(e)    welcomes the opportunity for the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee to provide an input into the work identified in (d) above over the coming weeks with the Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Tourism and officers.

Earlier on in the meeting Councillor I J Henderson had declared a Personal Interest in relation to this item. However, he had been granted a Dispensation by the Council’s Monitoring Officer in order to allow him to speak on this matter.

The Cabinet gave consideration to a report of the Leisure & Tourism Portfolio Holder (A.5) which sets out options for consideration by Cabinet and a recommendation on how to proceed in the light of the fact that community use agreements with the Sigma Trust for the two Joint Use Sports Facilities at Brightlingsea and Harwich Sports Centres were due to end on 31 December 2021.

It was reported that, over a period of 30 years and 15 years respectively, this Council had managed community use arrangements at Brightlingsea (BSC) and Harwich Sports Centres (HSC). Agreements with the respective schools had enabled the Council to open facilities to the public on those non-Council owned sites after curriculum hours, and in some cases for daytime use also.

Cabinet was reminded that, in August 2021, the Council, in conjunction with the Sigma Trust, had decided to extend the agreements for five months, from their original expiry date of 31 July 2021, until 31 December 2021.  This was to ensure that all appropriate residents and stakeholders could be consulted and an evaluation could be undertaken for a considered decision by Cabinet on the Council’s future involvement.        

Members were advised that the combined subsidy for managing community use facilities on the school sites was £146,969 and prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, combined attendances had decreased year-on-year from 68,832 to 61,864 (between 2017 and 2019).  In order to address that decline, a significant investment programme was considered to be necessary.

Cabinet was aware that the Council’s own facilities at Dovercourt and Walton had been subject to investment over recent years and that a refurbishment was close to completion at Clacton Leisure Centre.  The Joint Use Facilities also required investment and Cabinet would need to consider the viability and advisability of investing in facilities which the Council did not own.  This should also be considered in the context of longer term investment requirements for the three facilities under the Council’s ownership at Clacton Leisure Centre (CLC), Dovercourt Bay Lifestyles (DBL) and Walton-on-the-Naze Lifestyles (WONL).

It was reported that in order to establish local views on current and future community use of those facilities prior to a Cabinet decision, a six week consultation exercise had been carried out.  The consultation focussed on those facilities incorporated into the Joint Use Agreements and the full breakdown of that exercise was set out in Appendix C to the Portfolio Holder’s report.  Consultation had also taken place with both Brightlingsea Town Council and Harwich Town Council, to establish opinions and whether they would consider future involvement in the operation of BSC and HSC respectively.  Officers could facilitate further discussions with the respective Town Councils and the Trust, to establish if there was an appetite for involvement in opening the facilities for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 100