Winchester Fit for the Future Outline of Community Proposals May 2014

What’s the problem? o Winchester’s sports provision patchy, fragmented. Local facilities for training and competition are inadequate, for swimming and other popular sports – e.g netball, football, gymnastics. o River Park Leisure Centre is showing its age; energy inefficient, large carbon footprint. Council figures suggest capital investment of £6m+ needed for repairs and refurbishment, for centre to last another c.10 years. o A new sports and leisure centre would be a better investment – this would expand sports participation, support health and well-being, and develop local talent.

Winchester Fit for the Future o Group of sports stakeholders from Winchester and surrounding area o Working to improve sports provision – specifically the development of sustainable and accessible community sports facilities o Co-ordinated by volunteer campaign director, and proposal development group: Winchester City Penguins Swimming Club, Winchester and District Athletics Club, University of Winchester – broader network of c.20 other clubs and groups o Drawing on pro bono expertise, including from NGBs (ASA and others), University of Winchester, Studio Four Architects, MITIE, Synergy QS

Sports centre proposal o Based on research about local needs, supply and demand, longer-term potential – and lessons and good practice from UK and beyond o Facility mix similar to K2 Crawley o Cutting edge technologies, built to last – spend more now to save money later o Partnership approach to funding, design and build – WCC, HCC, University, clubs o Local social enterprise or similar community oriented operating model o Bar End identified as best location

A community sports and leisure centre that is… o Flexible – maximising use by enabling a wide range of activities, in a compact and well- designed facility o Accessible – serving all customers, whatever their needs or goals o Sustainable – minimising running costs and any negative social or environmental impacts o A community focal point – offering opportunities for play, training, competition, events

AquaZone o 50m by 8 lane main pool o Movable floor and boom(s), to partition the pool and vary its depth o Enabling simultaneous use by different groups engaged in different activities o Able to support competition in swimming, water polo and more (NB a ‘regional specification’ ≠ a ‘regional facility’!) o Spectator seating o Small warm pool(s) for babies, toddlers, hyrdrotherapy and supported activity for users with disabilities

GymZone o Sprung and matted floor o Appropriately equipped to support gymnastics and trampolining; some forms of dance, martial arts, yoga etc o Could also incorporate movable soft play equipment and ball pits, climbing and bouldering walls

CourtZone o Designed to support inter-county and national league competition in e.g. basketball, netball and volleyball (size of 3 netball courts) o Indoor training for e.g. athletics, cricket, football o Pull-down bleacher seating

HealthZone o A fitness centre – i.e. a gym, dance studio, and squash/racket courts (with movable walls) o A physiotherapist station, sports science laboratory, and associated health and well- being support o Could be expanded to provide broader health services to meet local needs

Other facilities o Café and/or sports bar – with pool tables and/or other leisure options? o Spectator seating for athletics track, with running strip in undercroft o Office space – including for local clubs o Teaching / meeting space

Sustainability o Energy efficient, super-insulated o Energy generation on-site – e.g. photovoltaic cells on roof, ground source heat pump o CHP, linked to district energy scheme o Solar thermal hot water o Rainwater harvesting, re-use of waste water o UV treatment for pool water – dramatic reduction in chlorine levels o Minimising running and lifecycle costs

Accessibility o Designed to support all age groups and levels of mobility / ability o Affordable provision o Located within easy reach of city centre but also accessible to those coming from outside o Cycle paths, safe walking routes o Easy to reach by car from M3 and other major routes o Good bus links, including to train station o Bar End offers all this, as well as synergy with existing sports facilities – e.g. athletics track, pitches

What’s happening now? o WCC feasibility study and options appraisal published May 2013 – weak in many areas, not a reliable business case o WCC Leader signalled ‘preferred option’ to Cabinet June 2013 o WCC officers developed proposal; presented this and Savills planning report to Cabinet and Overview & Scrutiny Committee September 2013 o Public meeting end September… o Ears now open to our proposals? o We’re now developing detailed business case:  Capital costs for 3 core components (pool, gymnastics, courts)  Capital estimates for whole centre - Synergy QS  Detailed programming for 3 core components - use to develop revenue projections  Running costs - for pool and for whole centre o Continuing our research and consultation o Pressing for multi-stakeholder meeting to discuss evidence and options, build partnership

Want to get involved? o See proposals and site plans at o Follow us on WFF Facebook page o You can still sign the online petition if you wish o What are the opportunities for your neighbourhood, our city and our district? You might want to talk to your councillors and other community leaders about your ideas, suggestions, concerns. o Contact WFF o Sign up for future updates