Talks held about transfer of ownership of Whitworth Leisure Centre

Talks have been held recently about the process to potentially transfer Whitworth Leisure Centre to the local town council or a community organisation.

Whitworth Town Council looks set to further-discuss the issue this week at an extraordinary meeting – but it could be held in private without the public.

The use of legal measures regarding Whitworth Leisure Centre has already been a controversial issue for some people in the area this year. However, councils are allowed to hold private sessions, if information is judged to be sensitive and councillors formally vote for discussions behind closed doors.

Whitworth Leisure Centre, which has a swimming pool, is earmarked for closure by Rossendale Leisure Trust and Rossendale Council. But the closure has sparked protests in Whitworth, where campaigners want the centre to stay open.

In the past, the centre was run by the Community Leisure Association of Whitworth (CLAW) for many years. But three years ago, it was taken-on by Rossendale Leisure Trust, the arms-length organisation which runs various indoor and outdoor sites on behalf of Rossendale Council.

The Whitworth swimming pool’s repair and maintenance were the focus of discussions and concerns at some borough council meetings last year. The building is nearly 50 years old, dating from the early 1970s.

More recently, the cost-of-living crisis, rising inflation and rising demand across all council services have made financial pressures worse, the council and leisure trust have said.

Earlier this year, Rossendale Leisure Trust’s management changed. Former boss Ken Masser departed and Samantha Sandford became the new chief executive.

In May, Rossendale Council and the leisure trust made the Whitworth Leisure Centre closure announcement.  The closure decision was made during a special council meeting and vote held in private, without press or public. Private sessions are legally allowed if councillors vote to do so. Typically, private  sessions are held to discuss sensitive information, such as financial or legal details. These are called ‘exempt’ information or items.

The closure decision came after a report by independent financial experts Grant Thornton. The report stated that if action was not taken to immediately address the budget deficit, both Rossendale Council and the leisure trust could be at significant financial risk over the next two years.

Many campaigners attended the recent full Rossendale Council meeting in June. In questions and answers, some residents said the Whitworth centre should be handed to a community group. Numerous questions were raised including how the Whitworth closure decision was reached. Some critics also claimed Rossendale councillors did not have enough time to consider all the information in May and queried why the May meeting was held in private.

 

 

However, Labour Coun Alyson Barnes, leader of Rossendale Council, explained the council’s decisions and reasons. She insisted that councillors were sufficiently briefed about Whitworth Leisure Centre in May and understood the issues they were asked to voted on.

Ultimately, she blamed years of Westminster government cuts to council budgets for the causes. She said councils across the UK face serious pressures on core activity so funding for leisure services, which are not legally required, had to change.

Since then, a meeting has been held in late July between leisure trust, council and community representatives.

A Rossendale Council spokesperson said council leader Alyson Barnes, chief executive Rob Huntingdon and Rossendale Leisure Trust chief executive Sam Sandford met Whitworth Town Council and community representatives.

The council spokesperson added: “The council is prepared in principle to explore the potential transfer of the leisure centre to Whitworth Town Council, as an established and reputable organisation with a proven track record – a crucial criterion for community asset transfer agreements.

“Talks were held to establish and discuss what was needed in order for this to happen. Firstly, an expression of interest must be made to the council along with a viable business plan for the operation of the centre that also aligns with any submissions that would be made to receive possible further funding from the Government Community Ownership Fund.

“To date, the council has not received any expressions of interest. We are aware that members of the Whitworth community are interested in establishing a community group to support any possible running the transferred centre. But this has not been formally established.”

 

 

Whitworth Town Council is holding an extraordinary meeting this week on Tuesday, August 1. The agenda includes a item, called Item 3, to discuss a proposal from Rossendale Council.

But a note states: “The town council will consider passing the appropriate resolution under the Local Government Act, that the press and public be excluded from Item 3, since it involved the likely discussion of exempt information.”

Town councillors will need to formally vote on whether they want to discuss the item in private. The town council meeting starts at 7.30pm at Whitworth Civic Hall, Market Street.

Robbie Macdonald, Local Democracy Reporter