KKP recently conducted an independent leisure stock review in response to Cheshire West and Chester Council's (CWAC) ambition to deliver "higher standards of leisure facilities than its counterparts and provide a service which contributes to delivery of the Council's wider strategic priorities."

CWAC inherited a ‘mixed bag' of leisure provision from the former district and county authorities from which it has taken over. It has some relatively new facilities as well as ones which would benefit from a degree of refurbishment. There are others where the key issue is the cost benefit analysis associated with refurbishing or replacing them, in some instances in more appropriate locations. To further complicate matters, there is a mixed economy of providers with both in-house and trust operations in situ.

KKP's approach to the Leisure Stock Review

Our core methodology for sport and leisure facility reviews is built on PPG17 principles making appropriate use of Sport England models and techniques. In addition to our expertise in the use of Active Places Power and top class GIS mapping, we place strong emphasis on inter-personal, face-to-face consultation to identify and quantify demand and ‘value' ensuring that reports and recommendations are robust and defensible. Initial analysis, informed both by Sport England strategic planning tools, KKP GIS capability and consultation develops a clear picture of current, planned and required future provision.

As part of the Leisure Stock Review process, KKP advised the Council on a series of key recommendations and mapped out how it should direct realisation of its vision.

Facility development and operation

• Improved spread of high quality provision, including development of a range of new wet, dry and lifestyle facilities plus a designated regional indoor sports arena and events venue.
• A process of site appraisals to identify appropriate locations in key local areas for proposed new facilities.
• Development of a significant investment strategy in line with outline budget costs.
• Maximise external funding opportunities, capital receipts and benefits presented as a result of the sale of redundant stock, facility realignment and the capitalisation of revenue.
• Address operational management to ensure effectiveness and efficiency.
• Ensure all facilities, including schools, are programmed and animated to their maximum capacity reflecting local needs and contexts.

A primary focus of the review was ‘wet' provision; a challenge in many local authority areas, especially with regard to leisure pools for which investment was at its height in the eighties. Many such facilities now require significant capital investment or need to be replaced.

The tendency is to replace them with more conventional pool structures, which are more reflective of aspirations to improve health and well-being. A more recent trend is to offer limited leisure water features within a traditional pool set up. This is one of the more cost-effective solutions the Council was invited to consider.

Partnerships

Partnership development is often the key to successful, sustainable strategy implementation. The Authority currently has a range of external partners, which own and/or provide access to sport and physical activity facilities including schools, sports clubs, the University of Chester, West Cheshire College and the PCT. Its pivotal role to develop and enhance relationships with a range of partners to optimise outcomes is recognised and the review also covered the need to:

• Develop a strategic relationship with University of Chester, which has aspirations to deliver a range of academies across the Borough plus the ambition to develop a major indoor and pitch facilities in Chester city centre.
• Work on its relationships with key sports clubs in the Borough plus the relevant NGBs.
• Further develop the partnership with Chester Swimming Association, Swim NorthWest and local clubs via development of an Aquatic Strategy.
• Work with planning and statutory consultees (i.e. Sport England) to assess the feasibility of including playing pitch sites within general site assessments for new facilities and to evaluate potential to replace lost provision within the greenbelt.
• Work with partners in Education to ensure that gaps in scale and quality of school sports provision are addressed particularly within the context of the Government announcement with regard to new academy programmes.
• Ensure that new school developments are designed in such a way that they maximise community use.

KKP also advised Cheshire West & Chester on monitoring and evaluation, stressing the importance of management information, data collation practices, key indicators and in particular use of intelligence to inform strategic and operational decision making in the future particularly in relation to the planning of service delivery.

Commenting on KKP's role in Leisure Review, Chris Cook, Head of Culture and Recreation at Cheshire West and Chester Council said,

"KKP provides the ideal balance of detail and innovation. The process undertaken has been robust but more importantly, the Company's experienced consultants have provided invaluable support to staff and stakeholders and challenged current thinking. We are pleased to be able to continue to lean on KKP's knowledge and expertise as retained advisers as the Council considers how to address the operational and structural challenges it faces in order to provide the industry leading service demanded by our members."