CONCERNS have been raised that the facilities at the proposed multi-million pound Winchester Sport and Leisure Centre may not have enough provision for a wide range of sports.

As reported in the Chronicle, an Olympic-size swimming pool, hydrotherapy suite and four squash courts with moveable walls are just some of the ideas for the £37m centre at Bar End to replace the ageing River Park Leisure Centre.

But in the lead-up to an outline business case being put forward, the city council’s overview and scrutiny committee discussed whether there was enough space for a variety of sports, with plans currently for an eight badminton court-sized hall instead of 12.

A needs analysis study by The Sports Consultancy concluded there is an oversupply of 23 sports halls in the district and therefore recommended a reduction in sports hall space in the project.

Emma Back, chief executive of Winchester Sport Art and Leisure Trust (SALT), told the meeting she supported “the vision that has been set out for the project” but said that not all the spare capacity mentioned was usable by clubs.

She said this was because school halls often had restricted usage times, that some are not fit for purpose, and that some like boys school Winchester College had no netball markings.

She added there had been “no real consideration of gymnastics facilities, athletics, nothing about a new home for the boxing club which will lose its home.”

When asked by Cllr Lucille Thompson about the suitability of school sports halls, Ms Back replied: “For some sports they are suitable, some they are not suitable at all. They often don’t have the right amount of run off- there may not be space for people to officiate at games safely, or no space for spectators.”

Cllr Kim Gottlieb said: “The proposal to reduce the size of the sports hall is a significant one which could compromise the current and future ambitions of a wide range of sports.

“It cannot happen unless the proposal is thoroughly investigated in conjunction with our partners and all the sports clubs, and then supported by all concerned.

“The council needs to be absolutely certain that the new centre will live up to its promise to serve all residents across the whole Winchester district.”

There was also discussion about two exempt papers on the project that were not heard in public session, one of which was a draft document and the other commercially sensitive.

Cllr Martin Tod asked what was confidential in the two papers that needed protecting.

Cllr Kim Gottlieb replied: “I think it is as it has not been finished. I think the public should be assured that this will be made public in due course.”

Cllr Tod added: “The public interest is in robust decision making. I personally recognise that some of the figures may change but I would rather have it out in the open for debate because we are about to make a decision on this paper.”

Chairwoman Cllr Kelsie Learney said: “We are a scrutiny body, we are not making a decision. The committee does believe that this should become an open paper as soon as possible so that the public can have a look at it, but we do need to have accurate papers before they are published.”

Following public consultations and discussions with clubs and governing bodies, the city council will work with Winchester University, who will be putting £6m into the scheme.

The Pinder Trust, a charity which helps disabled people, will put £1m towards the hydrotherapy suite.

The plans received support from the public during consultation held earlier this year, with 90.5 per cent of those surveyed supporting the concept of a new leisure centre, although they were not asked whether they preferred it at the current site in Hyde. A business plan will be confirmed on November 6.

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