Agenda item

Cabinet Member: Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration, Councillor Oliver Lewis

Officer: Interim Executive Director Place, Sarah Hayward

Key decision: no

RESOLVED: To

1.    Not reopen Purley Leisure Centre; and

2.    Consult with residents on the mitigations of using alternative leisure facilities at Waddon and New Addington.

The Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration (Councillor Oliver Lewis) stated that the council did not want to close facilities and recognised the impact the decision would have on users of the leisure centre; however stressed that it was no longer an option to continue as was. It was stated that Purley pool lacked sufficient space to enable it be a sustainable facility and was losing money year on year. Additionally, it was noted the facility was nearly 40 years old and required significant investments in its plants and mechanical equipment in order for it to reopen.

Members were informed that Purley leisure centre was first put forward for closure in 2007 when the previous Administration had built Waddon leisure centre. Since that date, the Cabinet Member stated, subsequent Administrations had kept Purley leisure centre open by patching up issues. It had led to a situation where there was an unsustainable venue which would require significant investment to undertake all of the required repairs in order for it reopen.

The Cabinet Member highlighted that there was provision within the Local Plan for a new publically accessible wet facility as part of the redevelopment of the site; and it was stated that it was the Cabinet Member’s view that the people of the south of the borough deserved a new leisure facility and so he hoped the council could work with interested parties to bring such a development forward.

The Cabinet Member for Children, Young People & Learning (Councillor Alisa Flemming) queried what mitigations had been put in place to ensure school children were able to access swimming classes. In response, the Cabinet Member noted that since the start of the pandemic in March 2020 Purley leisure centre had been unable to reopen due to the air handling system failing government standards for public buildings. In light of this, the council had looked to relocate user groups to alternative facilities. It was recognised, however, that such relocation did present additional journey times for many schools.

The Cabinet Member added that the council were communicating with schools as widely as possible as to the options available. It was noted that there were a range of other leisure facilities in the south of the borough including; New Addington, Waddon and gym facilities at Monk’s Hill. It was noted by the Cabinet Member that it was important that the council not only communicated the options available but also how they might travel to them.

The Cabinet Member for Homes (Councillor Patricia Hay-Justice) left the meeting at 19:22 and returned at 19:26.

The Cabinet Member for Communities, Safety & Business Recovery (Councillor Manju Shahul-Hameed) welcomed the start of the consultation and queried whether it was possible to understand usage of other leisure centres during the consultation period. The Cabinet Member stated that it was possible to assess membership databases for leisure centres which were open and whether people were travelling to use other facilities.

It was noted by the Leader of the Council (Councillor Hamida Ali) that councillors had received a large volume of contact from residents who were concerned about the impact of the closure. The national funding available to leisure centres during the pandemic was highlighted in the report, however it was noted that Purley was not eligible for the funding. The Leader requested information on the work to ensure a more fit for purpose facility was developed in the south of the borough.

The Cabinet Member informed Cabinet that he had received a letter from Swim England earlier that day and quoted the letter as saying: Purley is the main facility in Croydon that causes them concern as it currently provides a good amount of water space, but was approaching 40 years since it was built and that ongoing unsustainable investment would be expected at this point. It was highlighted by the Cabinet Member that there was recognition from the national swimming body that the situation would be unsustainable.

It was noted that the site of the leisure centre comprised of a multi-story car park and an old Sainsbury’s supermarket which was being leased to a developer. The Cabinet Member stated that the council had made it clear that it was expected that any development on the site would bring forward a new facility for the south of the borough. It was the desire of the council for there to be modern, publically accessible wet facility at the site.

The Cabinet Member noted that the leisure industry had suffered during the pandemic as facilities were unable to open for long periods of time. Whilst there was national leisure recovery fund available and the council was successful in being awarded just under £1 million; this funding did not cover Purley leisure centre due to the inadequate air handling system which meant it was unable to open and was ineligible. It was stressed that the issues faced at Purley were chronic and that even if the repairs could be undertaken the site would continue to not breakeven.

It was stated by the Shadow Cabinet Member for Culture & Regeneration (Councillor Jeet Bains) that several pages of the report focussed on what cannot be done to save the facility, but that only one paragraph considered all the options. As such, he queried what work had been done to try to keep the centre open.

The Cabinet Member confirmed that the council had looked all of the options around the viability of Purley pool and had sought to keep it open. The council had sought funding and had spoken to community groups who were potentially interested in operating the building but no concrete options had materialised. It was highlighted that Purley leisure centre had been an ongoing concern since 2007 and that should the investment take place to reopen the facility it would continue to lose money and be unviable.

Concerns were raised by the Shadow Cabinet Member for Resources & Financial Governance (Councillor Simon Hoar) that the loss of the facility would lead to a loss of users who would either go elsewhere or not attend a leisure centre at all It was noted that Waddon leisure centre was not located that far away but that it was challenging to access via public transport from Purley or Coulsdon. The same issue faced residents if they wished to use the New Addington site. With this in mind, he raised concerns that residents in the south of the borough would struggle to access leisure facilities and there would be an impact on people’s health and wellbeing.

The Cabinet Member encouraged Members to direct residents to the consultation so the council could fully understand the impact of the decision and develop mitigations, where possible. Whilst it was hoped that people would continue to use the leisure centres, it was recognised that residents may use the facilities in neighbouring boroughs.

The Leader of the Council delegated authority to the Cabinet to make the following decisions:

RESOLVED: To

1.     Not reopen Purley Leisure Centre; and

2.     Consult with residents on the mitigations of using alternative leisure facilities at Waddon and New Addington.