This paper reviews the current sports, recreation and health and fitness provision in the Borough provided by the public, private and voluntary sectors and assesses the priorities for the future. This section is divided into 6 areas :-

A number of issues relating to provision of sports facilities were identified in developing the Cultural Strategy including:

1.1 Leisure Centres And Health And Fitness Facilities

1.1.1 Health and Fitness Facilities

Since 1996 the growth of health and fitness facilities has accelerated both nationally and locally with significant new provision by the public and private sectors.

Both Littledown Centre and Stokewood Leisure Centre are moving away from providing low volume team and individual sports activities to offering high volume health and fitness activity programmes that utilise swimming pool areas, health and fitness areas and sports hall provision.

As a result there has been a slow migration of team sports activities, particularly basketball, volleyball and netball to other sports centres in the Town, especially the Sir David English Sports Centre and Bournemouth University. This is consistent with the 1996 Strategy that foresaw the opportunity to use 'education' sports halls for sport specific use and sports development work and allow the Council's leisure centres to focus more on developing mass participation. The Council should continue to support such developments.

In the private sector the massive growth in fitness provision has nearly quadrupled supply in Bournemouth and the basic packages provided usually include a small hall for activity programmes, a significant gym and in some cases a swimming pool. However this still captures a medium volume market who want some level of exclusivity offered through membership only packages.

The public sector can continue to create choice for large numbers of the population in high volume, low cost provision. Here membership benefits are primarily based on customers saving money who visit the facility more than 2-3 times a week.

There is also a convergence between the Government’s agenda of providing primary health care opportunities and the delivery of those opportunities within public leisure ventures. This has been acknowledged in the Cultural Strategy where strands of the Government's Health agenda link strongly to the need to improve the health of the nation by undertaking regular active exercise. The Council has successfully operated an Exercise Referral Scheme at Littledown Centre (7,000 people through since 1993) and is currently extending the programme to sites in the health action areas of Boscombe and West Howe. A Bournemouth Health Network has recently been established between the Council, Bournemouth PCT and Bournemouth University to promote a co-ordinated approach to delivering health improvement through increased physical activity.

Swimming pool provision is still primarily offered by the public sector because of its high capital and operational costs and includes Littledown Centre, Stokewood Leisure Centre, Kinson Swimming Pool and BIC Swimming Pool. The development by the Council of the Bournemouth Swimming Academy provides a co-ordinated and consistent swimming programme across the Borough with opportunities to expand latent demand particularly by cross selling to customers who use health and fitness facilities. In 1996 it was identified that there was adequate provision for swimming pools in the Borough and this was confirmed by application of Sport England's Facility Planning Model.

Appendix 1.1A of this paper lists the provision of sports halls, swimming pools and associated health and fitness facilities in the Borough by the public, private and voluntary sectors. The table highlights :-

• The massive growth in private sector health and fitness provision.
• A relatively high level of school sports hall provision
• An acceptable supply and distribution of swimming pools
• The lack of indoor leisure facilities in the Kinson, Westbourne and Muscliff/Stourvale areas of the town.

School sports halls and swimming pools are generally pre-booked by user groups and are not suited to responding to and encouraging casual use. The lack of indoor leisure facilities in Westbourne, Kinson, Muscliff and Stourvale was identified in the 1996 Strategy and has yet to be addressed. At Kinson there is potential to relocate the existing swimming pool to Kingsleigh First School site to achieve a leisure centre for North Bournemouth. The concept is to achieve an integrated Leisure, Health & Education Centre to service North Bournemouth. Proposed swimming facilities would include a 6-lane 25m pool and a hydro-pool for exercise classes.

Consideration is being given to the future of the BIC Leisure Pool. Achievement of the new provision at North Bournemouth as alternative provision to the BIC would exceed Sport England's Facility Planning Model Provision Standards.