Agenda item

(Leisure & Community Wellbeing Portfolio Holder) To consider the attached report (C-002-2018/19).

(1)        That the Petition received in support of retaining a Sports Centre within Epping Town be noted;

(2)        That the Petitioners be advised:

            (a)        the Council had yet to take any formal decision on the future of Epping             Sports Centre; and

            (b)        at this point, the Council was exploring options to meet the leisure   needs of existing and future residents of the local area; and

(3)        That the Council’s preferred approach would be to ensure that the existing Sports Centre in Epping remained open until any new alternative facilities were provided.

The Portfolio Holder for Leisure & Community Services presented a report on the receipt of a petition regarding the future of Epping Sports Centre.

The Portfolio Holder informed the Cabinet that a petition seeking the retention of a Sports Centre in Epping, and containing 1790 signatories, had been received by the Council. The full description of the petition was as follows: 

            “We petition the Council to keep a sports centre within Epping Town. Not             necessarily in the existing location but within the boundary of Epping Town.              The reason is to ensure that people who are unable to drive have access to a             sports centre (as is currently the case) and to avoid the additional traffic      fumes and congestion in Epping Town that an out of town sports centre would generate.”

The Portfolio Holder assured the Cabinet that the Council had yet to take any formal decision on the future of Epping Sports Centre, and was currently exploring options to meet the leisure needs of residents. However, the Council’s preferred approach would be to ensure that the existing Sports Centre in Epping remained open until any new facilities were provided. The petitioners would be advised of the Council’s position.

Cllr J H Whitehouse pointed out that the contract for Epping Sports Centre was only for 5 years, not 20 as was the case for the other three Sports Centres, and the current site had been earmarked for development in the Local Plan. The Acting Chief Executive stated that the contract to manage all four Sports Centres in the District was for 20 years, but the procurement process had included a hypothetical bid for the replacement of Epping Sports Centre. It had been agreed in the contract for the Council to accept the risk for the major structural elements at the Epping Sports Centre, and work had already started on the options appraisal for Epping Sports Centre to be considered at the September meeting of the Leisure Contract Partnership Board. Each option would have an indicative timeline against it when they were considered in the autumn.

Cllr Avey inquired whether the potential increased traffic flows had been considered if the Epping Sports Centre was re-located to North Weald Airfield. The Planning Portfolio stated that such analysis would be undertaken, but also pointed out that the current Sports Centres were not just for the residents of those settlements as other users would drive to use them currently. The Planning Portfolio Holder also re-iterated that the decision taken at the special Council meeting in December regarding the draft Local Plan was to not commit to having a Sports Centre in Epping, rather than to not have a Sports Centre in Epping.

The Cabinet welcomed the news that Epping Sports Centre would not close in the immediate future. Cllr Bedford inquired whether the contract would be re-negotiated if it became clear that Places for People would need to make a substantial investment into a new Sports Centre? The Acting Chief Executive stated that this was correct, and the Council also had the option to seek an alternative provider if necessary.

The Leader of Council felt that the discussion had been useful for dispelling myths in the public arena. The District was really lucky to have so many Sports Centres, where many Districts had little or no Sports Centre provision. The Leader also reminded the Cabinet that Waltham Sports Centre had remained open whilst the new Centre was being built.

Decision:

(1)        That the Petition received in support of retaining a Sports Centre within Epping Town be noted;

(2)        That the Petitioners be advised:

            (a)        the Council had yet to take any formal decision on the future of Epping             Sports Centre; and

            (b)        at this point, the Council was exploring options to meet the leisure   needs of existing and future residents of the local area; and

(3)        That the Council’s preferred approach would be to ensure that the existing Sports Centre in Epping remained open until any new alternative facilities were provided.

Reasons for Decision:

In accordance with the Council’s Constitution, any Petition containing at least 1200 signatories required the relevant Portfolio Holder to submit a report for consideration to the next available meeting of the Cabinet.

Other Options Considered and Rejected:

There were no other options available as the petition was simply reported to the Cabinet for noting.