Issue - decisions

Strategic Review of Leisure - Exempt

03/10/2013 - Review of Leisure Centres and Golf Courses

The Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing introduced a report by the Strategic Director of Families and Wellbeing which set out the main findings of the leisure review which the Council had commissioned V4 Services to undertake.  The report included the scope for the review, considered a number of options in relation to the future of the leisure provision, provided a number of specific recommendations and detailed an Implementation Plan to enable the proposed changes to be delivered.

 

The Cabinet noted that an investment approach was proposed to support the delivery of the savings which would see £2m investment in West Kirby, Guinea Gap and Europa facilities over the next two years. 

 

At this stage, it was recommended that the Council should continue to operate the facilities and services in-house for 12 – 18 months, in order to deliver a transformation programme (delivering savings and implementing a service redesign).  A longer term decision could be taken after the transformation was complete.  In this way the Council could ensure that any longer term delivery models would deliver further savings and improvements building from a lower cost base.  If the transformation and performance improvement was delivered successfully, the Council may decide that the reduced level of subsidy was affordable and that continued in-house delivery was therefore viable.

 

An Options Appraisal – Future Delivery Models was attached to the Strategic Director’s report as Appendix A.  A Management options Appraisal was attached as Appendix B.  A proposed delivery plan to enable the work to be undertaken to ensure the delivery of the transformation programme and of the required savings was attached as Appendix C.

 

The Leader of the Council informed that the review signalled a major transformational change in the Council’s leisure offer.  It flagged up the need for the Council to make a huge change, particularly in respect of the management culture, to make it more receptive to the needs of its customers

 

The Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing thanked Steve Laird , Director of Leisure and Cultural Services at V4 Services Ltd and his Team for all the work they had carried out on the review etc.

 

The Leader of the Council set out the key principles which were to protect the vulnerable, maintain affordable prices, no planned closures and investment in key facilities.  He informed that the Cabinet was fully behind the Team that was taking the action plan forward.

 

RESOLVED: That

 

(1)  the recommendations as set out  in section 7 of the report which are that the Council should continue to operate the facilities and services ‘’in-house’’ for 12 – 18 months, in order to deliver a transformation programme (delivering savings and implementing a service redesign) be agreed. A longer term decision can be taken after the transformation is complete.  In this way the Council can ensure that any longer term delivery models will deliver further savings and improvements building from a lower cost base, be approved; and

(2)  it be agreed that the actions identified in the delivery plan be delegated for authorisation by the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing where appropriate and that a further report in respect of a review of the Invigor8 programme be presented to the Cabinet in November 2013.