New Deal To Save City’s Leisure Centres
A NEW partnership between the City of Cardiff Council and a leading UK leisure operator will ensure the council’s leisure centres in the Welsh Capital will remain open for business for the next 15 years.
Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL) – a charitable social enterprise which operates more than 200 leisure facilities across the UK – has been recommended as the preferred bidder to manage and run all but one of the council’s leisure centres.
The Council’s Cabinet will consider a recommendation on Wednesday, July 27th, which will see the not-for-profit company take over the management and running of:
· Llanishen Leisure Centre
· Eastern Leisure Centre
· Fairwater Leisure Centre
· Western Leisure Centre
· Pentwyn Leisure Centre
· Maindy Leisure centre
· Star Centre (Splott) the current Star Centre will close when the new Star Hub opens in Autumn 2016
· Penylan Library and Community Centre
Cllr Peter Bradbury, Cabinet Member for Community Development, Co-Operatives and Social Enterprise, said: “Currently the Council subsidises leisure facilities to the tune of £2.5m a year. Our budgets are being slashed and we have to look at all our non-statutory services. Providing leisure centres is not a statutory obligation. This means it’s crucial we find new partnerships and new ways of working which can deliver these types of services to the high standard our residents have become accustomed to.
“This new proposed partnership, with a highly-respected UK company will ensure that the current subsidy will be removed by 2019/20 and there will be no subsidy paid by the tax payer at all.
“Crucially, this proposed contract will ensure that Cardiff residents continue to enjoy a range of high-quality leisure services, while making the required savings due to the ongoing austerity agenda.
“We have also ensured that all workers at the centre will receive at least the Living Wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation which is £8.25 an hour. That’s over a £1 more an hour than the national minimum wage for those over 25. All staff employed at the leisure centres will transfer to the new company under the same terms and conditions they enjoy now. The Local Government Pension Scheme is also maintained for all existing staff and any new workers employed by the company in the future.”
As part of the deal any leisure centre users who have a MAX Card will see their membership honoured for 12 months from the date of the switchover.
The recommendation to partner with GLL follows a Task and Finish exercise by the Economy and Culture Scrutiny Committee in 2015, which helped shape how the Council’s leisure facilities will be run in the future. Following the tender process, members of the Scrutiny Committee will provide their advice at a meeting on July 21st prior to the Cabinet making its decision.
Following the procurement process, GLL has been recommended as the Preferred Bidder for the contract, which under the proposal will see substantial investment by the company to improve the facilities at the centres over the contract term.
It is proposed that the new arrangement will come into effect by the end of this year and will ensure that services are maintained to a high standard and the subsidy the Council pays for leisure facilities will significantly reduce by year three of the contract, with no subsidy to be paid to the company by 2020.
If agreed this move should ensure that Cardiff’s leisure facilities continue to remain open, with new investment planned and additional sports provision planned in the future.
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