Agenda item

To receive a presentation from representatives of Alliance and Leisure. 

(a)       That the presentation be received;

(b)       That an update report be submitted to a future meeting of the Committee to outline the timeframes for the launch of the websites, electronic payments, and online bookings; and 

(c)        That thanks be passed to the staff at Deeside Leisure Centre, on behalf of the Committee, for their assistance in providing a tour of the facilities and the high level of customer service provided.   

The Chairman welcomed the representatives from Alliance and Leisure and invited them to give a presentation to the Committee on working in partnership with Flintshire County Council.  He introduced Sarah Watts, Managing Director, Paul Cluett, Commercial Director, John Lever, Partnership Manager, and Julia Goddard, Business and Development Manager.  The main points of the presentation were:

·     Successes and challenges in partnership working in the current leisure market

·        What has been developed in Phases 1, 2 and 3

·        Successes

·        Challenges

·        Next Steps

The Cabinet Member for Public Protection, Waste & Recycling & Leisure, welcomed the presentation.   He paid tribute to the work undertaken by the late Councillor. R. Macfarlane, Cabinet Member for Leisure, and looked forward to working with the Alliance & Leisure Team to expand on the progress which had been achieved.

The Director of Lifelong Learning commented on the good partnership working arrangement with Alliance & Leisure and on the improvements and enhancements achieved in customer services.  He also referred to the benefits to the community in terms of healthier lifestyles and crime prevention through participation in positive activities.  He said there was a need to focus carefully across all leisure centres and management to ensure that the Service operated as efficiently as possible and provided value for money.    

The Director referred to the challenges which lay ahead and advised that due to the current economic climate and financial restraints the Committee and the Authority would need to consider which facilities across Flintshire would be affordable and sustainable for the future.

Councillor W.P. Shotton expressed disappointment on the lack of marketing of leisure facilities in the past.  He suggested that local hotels which did not have their own leisure facilities could be contacted with the purpose of including the Authority’s leisure services as part of their promotional material.

Alliance & Leisure advised that the quality of provision at Deeside Leisure Centre was very high and reported that £100K had been spent on marketing, however,  there was still a need for local outreach and development work to be undertaken.  

Councillor P.G. Heesom expressed a number of concerns around the lack of leisure facilities provided in the west side of Flintshire and welcomed the Director’s comments that the Committee would be tasked with reviewing leisure provision across all Flintshire in the future. 

The Cabinet Member for Public Protection, Waste & Recycling & Leisure,  acknowledged the issues raised by Councillor Heesom and agreed there needed to be an appropriate and affordable level of leisure facilities across Flintshire.   

Councillor N.M. Matthews commented on the development of links with the private sector to encourage improvement and use of leisure facilities and cited the holding of corporate events as an example.  She commended Officers on the excellent facilities available in the Afon Spa.  

The Chairman suggested a number of further marketing initiatives to involve schools and raise awareness of the facilities available to young people.

Mrs. R. Stark welcomed the new Afon spa website, however, she expressed a number of concerns around the Authority’s website which she felt was time consuming and wearisome to navigate when sourcing information around leisure provision.  She referred to the need for ease and speed of information which was important in terms of keeping young people engaged online. 

In his response thePrincipal Leisure Services Officer referred to the Authority’s corporate website and the need to adhere to Flintshire County Council guidelines.  He acknowledged the concerns which were raised by Mrs. Stark and explained that the Authority had invested heavily in purchasing new software to improve its website.  He said agreement had been reached which had enabled a bespoke and commercially orientated website to be created for the Afon Spa.  The Director of Lifelong Learning advised that further bespoke websites would be developed in the near future for other leisure facilities.  He advised that an update report would be submitted to the Committee to outline the timeframes for the launch of the websites, electronic payments, and online bookings.  

Councillor D.I. Mackie commented on the need to be kept informed of issues around access to information on the Authority’s website and welcomed an update report on future developments.

Mr. D. Hytch thanked Officers for the guided tour of facilities at Deeside Leisure Centre and commended staff on the high level of customer service provided.  He asked whether similar training packages to enhance the customer experience could be shared with other leisure facilities in the County.

            The Chairman thanked the representatives of Alliance & Leisure for the presentation and suggested it might be helpful to have a further presentation at some point in the future to provide an update on developments. 

RESOLVED:

 (a)      That the presentation be received;

(b)       That an update report be submitted to a future meeting of the Committee to outline the timeframes for the launch of the websites, electronic payments, and online bookings; and 

(c)        That thanks be passed to the staff at Deeside Leisure Centre, on behalf of the Committee, for their assistance in providing a tour of the facilities and the high level of customer service provided.