Agenda item

Roger Parkin, Strategic Director of Customer and Community Services outlined a report requesting that the Committee consider and comment on proposals to enable works to facilitate the provision of a temporary ice risk in the Borough for the duration of the refurbishment of the Slough Ice arena.  A number of Members addressed the Committee under Rule 30.  The following groups also addressed the Committee and a summary of their presentation follows:

Slough Community Leisure (SCL)

James King, Operational Director, discussed a proposal in which SCL would utilise half of the Montem Leisure Centre Sports Hall to provide a temporary ice rink, the cost of which would be borne by SCL. The Charity would in conjunction with other stakeholders also provide a 10 year diabetes intervention at a minimum cost to the charity of £500k.

Mr King acknowledged that the proposed Sports Hall rink would be too small for ice hockey but advised that 80 % of the community use could be retained. He also discussed the legal dispute with Slough BC and advised that SCL’s proposal would provide £1M of targeted investment and resolve a number of current and potential issues.

SPICE (Special People on Ice)

Ricci Hodgson, Chair of SPICE, explained that the valuable voluntary organisation taught children and young adults with additional needs, to ice skate. The organisation currently had 120 Members and a waiting list. SPICE provided a lifeline to its Members and physical exercise. It had 2 ice hockey teams and would represent Great Britain in Canada. Mr Hodgson was concerned that the temporary closure of the Ice Arena would result in the redundancy of staff and the loss of professional coaches who would not return to Slough. SPICE supported the SCL proposal to create a temporary ring at the Montem Leisure Centre.

The Synchronised Skating Club

Shirley Goodgroves was unhappy at the potential of no temporary rink provision. The Club’s skaters had been together for 6 years and won medals in Cardiff and Belgium.  Some Members had left due to the uncertainty around future rink provision and the coaches could not afford to be out of work for 12 months or more. Ms Goodgroves was concerned that when the Slough Ice Arena re-opened, it would have no skaters or coaches.

Slough Jets

Steve English, Slough Jets, advised that the Club was formed 30 years ago and enjoyed local, national and international success. The Club had over 160 players and 90% of the junior and seniors were from the Slough locality. The programme was fortunate to have 2 of the best junior coaches in the country and Mr English was concerned that not having a suitable temporary rink would cause irreparable damage to Ice Hockey in Slough and other skating communities. It would also impact on the ability of young people to have things to do in the evening and at weekends, and affect their ability to exercise and have fun.  Mr English suggested that the timescale for the refurbishment should be re-evaluated and a temporary solution be found that enable ice skating to be maintained.

Members noted the options set out in the report that had been explored to make provision for a temporary ice rink for the duration of the refurbishment of the current facility, commencing in November 2016, for a minimum of 9 months.  It was estimated that the provision of a temporary rink would cost the Council a minimum of £632K.  The Officer advised that the Council had contacted other ice rinks to identify free ice time and also to provide alternative types of activity for users.

The Committee was advised that initially a decision not to provide a temporary ice rink provision was agreed due to the cost but in view of concerns raised by users, research was conducted to provide a temporary solution.  This included the installation of a small rink which would have limited use and a larger 56m x 26m rink which would cost between £750k and £1.2m, excluding enabling works (estimated at between £200 to £500k), utility costs, staffing and security. 

SCL had submitted a proposal to provide a 30m x 20m rink in the Montem Leisure Centre Sports Hall. This would mean however that the Sports Hall could not be used for its usual sports and there was concern that the size of the temporary rink would not be appropriate for ice hockey activities. SCL’s proposal was subject to a number of caveats which the Council believed were inamicable to the Council’s long term strategy. It was considered that entering into an agreement with SCL could be met by a legal challenge from other leisure providers.

The option to delay the refurbishment works to 2017 to enable peak annual use and events to be carried out would amongst other issues result in an increased capital costs to the refurbishment works.

The Officer considered that any temporary rink must be suitable for all the users who used the current Ice Rink.  He highlighted that the Council had a £38m leisure strategy.  Members were asked to consider the affordability of a temporary provision, the wellbeing of the Council in that the funds would be drawn from reserves and also to consider ways in which the user groups could be kept together.  He asked the Committee to be mindful of the Council’s current revenue position and the huge financial pressures which affected for example, Housing and Social Care. It was acknowledged that the Clubs and Groups who used the ice rink did a wonderful job and the decision on whether to provided temporary provision would be made by the Cabinet at its meeting on 18^th July.

The Committee debated the report and raised a number of comments/ questions including the following:

·  What was the likely final cost for the enabling works? This could be as high as £1.2m.

·  What was the position regarding the availability of the Ice Rink offered by Cardiff? It was confirmed that this rink was no longer available but the company in question would support an alternative provision to match the needs of the community. The Council would need to mobilise rapidly should it be decided to follow this option.

·  A Member highlighted that if there were any delays on the start of the development on the Montem site then costs would rise rapidly and it was important that the Committee were clear on this point.

·  A Member suggested that the SCL proposal was a ‘red herring’ and their rink would only be half size. Any new provision must be suitable for all users. SCL should be required to submit a competitive tender like all other companies and any arrangement with SCL would jeopardise the process.

·  Was it likely that the refurbishment of the Ice Rink could over run like the Curve project? The Officer was confident that the project would be completed on time and there would be a heavy penalty imposed if it did not. Should the project over run then any temporary provision would be extended.

·  A Member compared the usage of the Ice Rink to Slough Football Club. The Officer  advised that the club facilities were well used.

·  A Member questioned whether the loss of the rink usage would have an impact on future health of residents and was concerned that a 10 year health analysis had not been carried out. The Officer commented that the Councils Wellbeing Strategy made broad provision for health in the community and the leisure strategy was only a part of this.

·  Would the outstanding litigation with SCL affect the start date of the refurbishment works. The Officer advised that he was unable to discuss this in any detail but the works were scheduled to commence in November.

·  Which other sites had been considered for the siting of a temporary rink? The Haymill Site, Upton Court Park and Salt Hill Park had all been considered but none were suitable.

·  The cost for the car park for the temporary rink was staggering? The officer advised that it would be necessary to provide110 car parking spaces on the grassed area of the Montem Car Park. This would then have to be removed.

·  What would the social impact be if a temporary rink could not be provided? The Officer had discussed this with Youth Services and they would be happy to work up a programme of activities.

The Committee considered the report and submissions and it was:

Resolved-  That Cabinet be recommended to explore the procurement of a full sized temporary Ice Rink to meet the needs of all users, for the duration of the refurbishment of the current Ice Rink.