Agenda item

To enable the Cabinet to consider comments and recommendations made by the Resources and Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee following that Committee’s scrutiny of the Council’s provision of leisure services.

RESOLVED that the comments and recommendations of the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee be noted and the comments of the Leisure & Tourism Portfolio Holder, in response thereto, be endorsed.

Cabinet was aware that, at the meeting of the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 21 September 2020 (Minute 87 referred), the Committee had been provided with an overview of the Leisure Provision by the Council in the District.

The Committee had been updated on a number of items on the Sport and Leisure work programme by the Assistant Director for Economic Growth and Leisure (Mike Carran). Those items had included:-

(1)       the emerging District-wide Leisure Strategy as previously reported to it with progress made on the development of the Strategy;

(2)       the refurbishment of the Clacton Leisure Centre – a review of the arrangements for the refurbishment since they had last been presented to the Committee;

(3)       the sale of land to Clacton County High School, community access to the pitches on that land, management of that community access and the conditional works on the existing 3G pitches at the Leisure Centre with progress and timescales; and

(4)       the refurbishment of the Skate Park at the Leisure Centre – plans and timescales.

After much deliberation the Committee had commented and recommended to Cabinet that:

1.         the Committee notes the intentions of a sports and leisure strategy to be considered in early 2021. While the Committee would want a strategy as early as possible it believes that the additional time will ensure that the strategy can address the issues facing the District, including encouraging people to regress from being fairly active, to active and from inactive to fairly active and with provisions for those with disabilities. The Committee would welcome the early sight of the emerging strategy and the associated action plans to support delivery of that strategy. The strategy itself, should rightly address the position beyond COVID.

2.         the intentions for the redevelopment of Clacton Leisure Centre has been shelved for the end of this calendar year and the Cabinet is reminded that this Committee has previously requested that the consultation with users should be undertaken and detailed examination of the costs of the works be undertaken to secure value for money and a positive contribution of the Council’s aims of reducing its carbon foot print.

3.         that proposals around Back 2 Business of Clacton’s Skate Park to be refurbished, to be pursued and that the associated lessons from the site in Dovercourt delivered to the Harwich Town Council, be harnessed including funding for it.

4.         the previous issue, of the vital importance of consistent and common branding identified by this Committee on 13 August 2020 in respect of tourism, should also be applied to leisure services to help promote the area and its facilities  to residents and visitors.

5.         all tenders for improvements to the leisure facilities contain a specific recommendation in respect of energy efficiency costs and savings and the long term impact of the carbon foot print of Tendring District Council.

The Cabinet had before it the following response thereto which had been submitted by the Portfolio Holder for the Leisure & Tourism –

“The Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Tourism welcomes the comments of the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee.  The emerging Sports Facilities strategy has rightly been postponed until there is a stable operating position for our Leisure Facilities and robust, long term decisions can be made.  The strategy will be subject to consultation with the committee as well as wider partners and stakeholders.

The planned Leisure Centre refurbishment has been carefully prepared by appropriately skilled and experienced professionals and the specification of works will be robust and invite proposals for carbon reduction.

The Committee will have noted the refurbishment of Clacton Skate Park was incorporated in the short term plans for the Council’s Back to Business report.  Officers will now work with park users to take the project forward and meet the aspirations of local people.

The Council has set out its objectives for branding in the draft Tourism Strategy, which will be finally considered in the New Year, following a period of consultation.”

Having considered the comments and recommendations submitted by the Resources and Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee together with the Portfolio Holder for Leisure & Tourism’s response thereto:

It was moved by Councillor Porter, seconded by Councillor Newton and:-

RESOLVED that the comments and recommendations of the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee be noted and the comments of the Leisure & Tourism Portfolio Holder, in response thereto, be endorsed.