Agenda item

Andy Eymond (on behalf of Sport Winchester) addressed the Committee on this item, speaking in support of the strategy.

In summary, Andy Eymond made reference to the following points which were responded to accordingly by the Cabinet Member and relevant officers:

·       Sport Winchester were a registered charity representing sports clubs and organisations primarily in the Winchester City area.

·       Sport Winchester aims to deliver the best possible sporting facilities for the present and future.

·       The representative welcomed the resources the council was investing in the strategy, noting that not every council undertakes such an effort.

·       They emphasised the importance of improving the assessment of sports needs across the city and believed more evidence would lead to better outcomes.

·       The goal was to make the report as strong as possible by contributing data, references, and feedback, and by involving sports clubs.

·       Two areas where participation was rapidly increasing are women and girls’ sports and accessibility for people with disabilities or mental health challenges, but current facilities did not adequately meet these needs.

·       They offered support to make the report as strong as possible.

·       They believed the summary reports presented had room for improvement.

The Cabinet Member for Community and Engagement introduced the item and emphasised that this was not a completed strategy but an update on the work carried out by Continuum Sport and Leisure to date and discuss the next stages. The views of the committee were sought in response to specific questions as follows:

(a)       Do the emerging themes match members’ perception of the key issues    relating to sports provision across the district?

(b)       Are there any significant issues or concerns that have been        overlooked?

(c)       Do members know of specific (significant) demand that is not reflected   in this?

The Chairperson welcomed Caroline McRoyall and Jack McGee of Continuum Sport and Leisure to the meeting whom, together with the Service Lead: Communities and Wellbeing and the Contract Manager, provided a presentation and answered questions thereon. In summary, the presentation highlighted the following points:

(i)         An assessment of the need for playing pitches, sports, and recreation    facilities, and opportunities for new provisions.

(ii)        It sought to comply with statutory policies and guidance, audit existing      provisions, identify current and projected local needs, assess deficits     and surpluses, protect and enhance facilities, and inform decision-        making processes.

(iii)     Progress to date included completion of Stage B and near completion of Stage C.

(iv)     Stage B involved 66 site visits, consultations with facility providers,           town/parish councils, sports clubs, and National Governing Bodies     (NGBs), as well as a review of club affiliation and booking data.

(v)       Stage C assessed the need for playing pitch sports, calculated likely future demand, and identified key priorities.

(vi)     Emerging themes and priorities include maintenance (pitch       improvements), capital (new facilities/refurbishments), lease/security       (secured facility use), and community use (enabling wider use of sites).

(vii)         The council's role was to oversee the strategy and support project   delivery, while NGBs and Sport England will agree on key priority         projects to enable external funding.

(viii)       The presentation also outlined specific findings and priorities for        various sports, including football, cricket, rugby, hockey, racquet sports, bowls, sports halls, swimming, and boxing.

          Timelines:   

(ix)     Stage C (Assessment of Needs) - signed off January 2025.

(x)       Stage D (Strategy Development) - February/March 2025.

(xi)     Stage E (Annual Update by Winchester City Council).

The committee proceeded to give their views to the questions set out in (a) to (c) above, ask questions and comment on the following matters, which were responded to as summarised below by the Cabinet Member, Service Lead: Communities and Wellbeing, Contract Manager and Continuum representatives.

(i)         What is the biggest shortcoming you see given your wide portfolio of management and engagement?

(ii)        How do you balance the needs of those engaged in sports versus     needs that may exist beyond those processes? Reliance on Active          Lives and Active Partnership data through Sports England to gain      awareness of needs. Feedback via local authorities and parishes etc to   capture data on specific needs within the community. Evidenced actual demand and demonstrated need.

(iii)     What is the connection between the output of this and how that might   enable funding that the council or relevant bodies can access? Local       (ie Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL)) as well as national regional        funding. An action plan including key priority projects for the area will be included within the strategy.

(iv)     What is going to be the way forward to strengthen and advise      sometimes small clubs in appropriate care and management, regarding          the issue of plastic pitches? Clear guidance was provided to applicants around the management and maintenance programme for 3G artificial      pitches to ensure longevity. The Football Foundation were also very    aware of the environmental impact of these facilities and were working      to mitigate environmental risk as much as possible. A balance between     environmental and health and wellbeing challenges would continue to    be monitored. Grass pitches would remain for the majority of the           provision.

(v)       Did you look at the needs in terms of facilities and sports for people          with disabilities? Yes, where clubs had this provision in place already        or had identified a need for growth in the future and where national       governing bodies were aware of the activity. The accessibility of      pavilions were also checked.

(vi)     What were the criteria in terms of who you consulted with among        parish councils, and to be sure that you're not only speaking to the          ones that already have a facility? Every parish council received          communication with surveys and offers to meet and discuss facilities.      Where sites were owned, parishes were invited to attend site visits.

(vii)         Could I just check that we have a good geographical spread of the      ones that did answer the survey? The survey was issued to every club        contact to encourage completion. Where incomplete a call would be       made. Club owned sites were also invited on site visits. Officers would       provide geographical spread data in due course. Are you looking into      the barriers to booking facilities and will it form a part of your report?        Where clubs had raised issues, these would be recorded as part of the      strategy.

(viii)       When it says future demand, is that future demand based on the parish      council response or is it from the club? Future demand that is    aspirational by the clubs was tracked. The numbers given within the         presentation was based purely off of objective data from Sports      England playing pitch calculator.

(ix)     Given the demand for football pitches and quality of pitches and year-          round availability, are we keeping in mind those times when those pitches are not available because of flooding? The quality of grass    pitches were      assessed to establish how many games a grassed pitch      can sustain to match this with demand, using the guidance of national     governing bodies.

          It was reported that facilities for different tiers (ground grading         requirements) of sport in some areas needed to be assessed as       although there was provision, play could not always take place.

(x)       Community use provision at Sir John Moore Barracks.

(xi)     In terms of artificial pitches, with a shortfall of pitches, do we have an        understanding of where the need is in terms of geographic location? In        relation to artificial pitches the need was evenly spread throughout the      district. The shortfall of artificial pitches was highlighted by the      committee.

(xii)         It was noted that there was a cricket ground at Wield, at the top of the      Alresford and Itchen Valley patch (adjacent to the Yew Tree Pub), that      may meet the need. This site would be explored by officers.

(xiii)       For junior activities, does the demand outstrip availability? It was        recognised that the larger clubs were at capacity/overused. It was the          aim to identify if a non-turf pitch could be added to improve provision        for junior players as an additional improvement that would be made.

(xiv)       The creation of sporting hubs versus the sense of belonging/local   distinctiveness for residents with dispersed, local facilities.

(xv)        Is there a national sports body that assesses the demands of these         sports compared to the population that we then apply to the kind of        local stated demand?  Sport England.

(xvi)       If land came up and we were looking to put it to sports pitch use, how    do manage state-controlled distribution of sports? It was recognised       that each sport operated differently in terms of their need and a         preferred ‘sport model’. For example, rugby was a club-based sport      seeking a ‘home ground’ requiring a higher degree of infrastructure      which larger clubs would need to  support, compared with football or        tag rugby which could operate locally. Community groups and parish       councils were asked to make contact with the team for further guidance and advice from the National Governing Bodies.

(xvii)      Guidance on catchment areas for different sports. The national   governing bodies would indicate where there was a demand for more       sport and clubs in their area and Sports England provided guidance on          a ‘20-minute catchment modal’. Typically for sports such as rugby and      hockey, players would usually travel out to their local sport venue.

(xviii)    The assessment of full facilities at venues as another added value       factor to attract a cross section of users.

(xix)       The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) provided knowledge of the       demand for court availability and who books and utilises court facilities    across the district. Where available, facilities at club-based modals           could be opened for drop-in sessions. The priority focus of the LTA was      the need for additional padel courts in the area as an emerging sport, whilst being mindful of the placement and sound proofing of these          courts when provision takes place. The sites listed within the        presentation were those where there was an emerging priority project;         all court provision would be listed within the main strategy

(xx)        Managing the unmet demand of an ageing population to enhance their     health and wellbeing needs. The Sports England facilities planning       model would be looked at with the local demographic, specifically in    respect of swimming and bowls. The National Governing Bodies would      provide data to outline the number of members that can be accommodated per club for future capacity and demand.

(xxi)       Lease management guidance and support.

(xxii)      There were currently no dedicated or non-dedicated gymnastics f       facilities – this was in relation to registered facilities affiliated to      England Gymnastics. There were existing gymnastic programmes in     place at other venues which were ran by the operator e.g. primary      gymnastics at WSLP.

(xxiii)    With Meadowside Leisure Centre close to full peak capacity, there will        be some recommendations to look at existing hours of use with options to extend this and investigate where the nearest sports halls are to    them with the possibility to open school sites up for community use in      the area.

(xxiv)    The adequacy of swimming lessons – there was existing capacity   within the swimming lesson programme.

(xxv)     New premises for the Winchester Boxing Club. This need was           emphasised within the strategy and the response of the National         Governing Body, with suitable premises options to be explored.

At the conclusion of debate, the committee thanked the Cabinet Member, Caroline McRoyall and Jack McGee of Continuum Sport and Leisure and officers for their attendance. The committee would continue to encourage local community groups and Parish Councils to make contact with the team to address questions and raise points to feed into the strategy and welcomed the positive health and wellbeing benefits of sports delivered by local clubs, hubs and multi sports facilities for all residents. 

          RESOLVED:

                     That the presentation be received, and the comments     raised by       the committee, as summarised above, be noted