Agenda Item No: 7 Wolverhampton City Council OPEN DECISION ITEM Adults and Community Scrutiny Panel Date 22 MARCH 2012 Originating Service Group(s) LEISURE AND COMMUNITIES Contact Officer(s) R WlLLOUGHBY A FIELDHOUSE I CULLEY Telephone Number(s) (55) 6106 (55)6224 (55)5636 Title SPORT DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT STRATEGY RECOMMENDATION That Adults and Community Scrutiny Panel provides their observations on the recommendations below: 1. That Cabinet approve the draft Wolverhampton Sport Development and Investment Strategy (WSDIS) for public consultation. 2. That Cabinet approve creation of a new 10 hectare multi-pitch site at Barnhurst Lane to mitigate for loss of playing fields elsewhere in the City. 3. That Cabinet approve, in principle, replacement of the Jennie Lee Centre Synthetic Turf Pitch (STP) at one of the option sites identified in Section 5, subject to consultation and further feasibility work. 4. That Cabinet approve the Playing Pitch Strategy and Action Plan. 5. That Cabinet receive a future report on the Sport Development and Investment Strategy after consultation and the Open Spaces Strategy and Action Plan in Autumn 2012. 1. PURPOSE 1.1 To summarise the main aims and objectives of the draft WSDIS and how it will be used to secure investment in new sport facilities in Wolverhampton. 1.2 To explain the background to and seek endorsement for a way forward on two key WSDIS actions which will unlock new development and provide new sport facilities - Barnhurst Lane multi-pitch site and a new Synthetic Turf Pitch. 2. BACKGROUND 2.1 Since the previous review of Sport & Recreation, Wolverhampton’s offer has improved significantly and the numbers of people accessing City Council Sport & Recreation and Community Recreation services annually has risen from 681,324 in 2001/2 to 1,454,930 in 2010/11. Figures for 2011/12 will show a further significant increase with the inclusion of data from Blakenhall Community & Healthy Living Centre and Bert Williams Leisure Centre. Leisure is a growth sector which can help to support the City’s economic growth and attract professional and managerial households to stay the City. Links with skills and training can be made to promote local employment e.g. Wolverhampton College coaching courses. 2.2 Notwithstanding the difficult economic climate, Wolverhampton has a good track record of investment in facilities and programmes to promote and drive sport and physical activity, investing £41 million in new sports and improved facilities at Aldersley Leisure Village (1999), Wolverhampton Swimming and Fitness Centre (2006), Blakenhall Community & Healthy Living Centre (October 2010) and the new Bert Williams Leisure Centre at Bilston Urban Village (December 2011). 2.3 Wolverhampton has also benefited from significant capital investment from the PCT of £1.8 million which has helped develop opportunities such as Outdoor Gyms, Older Peoples gyms, BMX track and additional joint investment with Wolverhampton City Council in continuing the free swimming programme for all age 16 and under Wolverhampton residents. The BSF programme presents further opportunities to enhance sporting facilities within the Education Portfolio particularly as the majority of facilities are located on school sites. 2.4 However, there is a need to develop a planned and robust approach to the maintenance and development of sporting assets within the city. This approach will need to maximise partnership working and income for facilities so that medium and long term maintenance is implemented successfully. 2.5 A number of school sites with playing fields have been identified for disposal through the BSF programme and primary school rationalisation. Where a disposal involves school playing fields the Council must obtain prior approval from the Secretary of State through Section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. The Council needs to demonstrate that proposals to mitigate for loss of playing fields comply with an adopted Sports Investment Strategy. 2.6 A planned approach is also necessary to support the progression of development sites where certainty is required regarding the replacement of playing pitches. Development of the Jennie Lee site will result in the loss of a Synthetic Turf Pitch (STP) and mini football pitches, which must be replaced elsewhere in the City. The Goodyear housing development cannot progress without agreement from Sport England regarding replacement of an existing cricket pitch. 2.7 In order to develop this planned and robust approach, a Wolverhampton Sport Development and Investment Strategy (WSDIS) has been prepared for formal consultation. The WSDIS sets out a vision and Action Plan and a strategic framework for the development and improvement of sporting facilities and encourage increased participation in sport & physical activity within the context of the Council’s overarching strategic priorities and those of key partners such as National Governing Bodies for sport (NGB’s), Sport England and the Health Sector. 2.8 The WSDIS has been developed alongside a Playing Pitch Strategy and Action Plan and the first stage of an Open Space Strategy and Action Plan, to ensure a co-ordinated approach to sport and physical activity and to meet Sport England’s and section 77 requirements from the schools assets team that the City has an investment strategy and Playing Pitch Strategy in place. While these are three separate projects, they will together form a suite of documents setting out the strategic approach to sport and open space in the City. 2.9 The Council’s Playing Pitch Strategy and Action Plan has been updated and has formed a key input to the WSDIS by establishing supply and demand for playing pitches across the City. Sport England require all local authorities to have an up-to-date Playing Pitch Strategy, prepared using a Sport England methodology. The Playing Pitch Strategy will be the main consideration in Sport England’s assessment of planning documents and planning proposals involving playing pitches. The Council has also begun to prepare a Wolverhampton Open Space Strategy and Action Plan to focus on the wide range of issues affecting the provision and management of different types of open space across the City, the first stage of which has refreshed the City’s open space standards for the purpose of informing the review of the current approach to planning obligations for open space and sport in the City. 2.10 As noted in section 2.9, the City’s open space standards have been produced. The next stage of the open spaces strategy and action plan will be to assess the value of open space sites against those standards. This in turn will provide a priority list for the action plan, in order to focus developer contributions as well as how section 77 capital receipts are reinvested. 3. WOLVERHAMPTON SPORT DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT STRATEGY (WSDIS) 3.1 Consultation Arrangements 3.1.1 Knight, Kavanagh and Page (KKP) were appointed in 2011 to develop a Sport Development & Investment Strategy for the period up to 2022. The Strategy is currently in draft form, ready for consultation with stakeholders and the wider public during April / May. The Strategy must be finalised by July 2012 in order to meet BSF / development site timescales. 3.1.2 The Strategy is a City Strategy involving a range of partners, including the Wolverhampton Community Sport and Physical Activity Network, National Governing Bodies and Sport England. 3.1.3 As part of the preparation of the Strategy, KKP consulted with all Community Sport and Physical Activity Network partners from across the City with the support of Wolverhampton City Council and the Black Country Be Active Partnership. 3.1.4 Upon agreement of the recommendations, the WSDIS will go out to all partners for consultation for a period of two months; this will include all members of the Community Sport and Physical Activity Network and sport specific development groups including national governing bodies and clubs. All agencies engaged within the development of the document will also be invited to comment. 3.2 Outcomes and Objectives 3.2.1 The Strategy sets out a vision and strategic framework for the development of sport and sports facilities in Wolverhampton set in the context of the Council's overarching strategic priorities and those of key partners. Although the Council will be closely involved in its delivery and be a key investor, it is just one of a number of partners that will, collectively, be responsible for development and implementation of the Strategy. 3.2.2 The main outcomes and objectives of the Strategy are: 1) To measurably increase levels of participation in sport and physical activity from current levels – for young people and adults in the City. • To drive and deliver a coordinated approach to the development of sport and physical activity. • To establish a benchmark for current provision and participation levels. • To identify and prioritise mainstream and emerging/developmental sports and identify how these can be further developed to increase participation. 2) To take positive action to support and encourage specific groups to take part and enable targeted under-represented groups to achieve their potential in sport and physical activity. • To specifically and measurably reduce the number of overweight and obese young people in the City working with schools to deliver programmes to address this issue. • To effectively target resource at increasing participation among/in Wolverhampton’s key under-represented groups and localities. • To maximise partnership options (within/outside the City Council) to secure investment and support to develop and deliver specific programmes to achieve these outcomes. 3) To deliver sustainable, accessible, high quality facilities to accommodate and support the drive to increase participation in sport and physical activity in the City. • To better co-ordinate the development, operation, programming and management of facilities in conjunction with key partners. To, in particular, establish a more coherent, structured relationship with schools to maximise community use of educational facilities.