Agenda item

RESOLVED: That

·         the report be noted along with the comments made by the Committee and that the comments be reflected in the final strategy report that goes to Mayor and Cabinet.

James Lee (Director of Communities, Partnerships and Leisure) and Neville Graham (Sport and Leisure Service Manager) introduced the report. The following key points were noted:

3.1. In pre-Covid times, a public consultation was undertaken to inform this strategy which involved interacting with over 2000 people. After Covid hit, the sports and leisure team had to rebuild its services.

3.2. In conversations with Sports England, officers had prepared this strategy that referred to Sports England’s strategic approach so that the Council could lean on them for future capital funding. The strategy also set out the Council’s clear vision and priorities for creating a whole systems approach to physical activity.

3.3. Along with the strategy, the independent assessment of Lewisham’s indoor built sports facilities was also going to Mayor and Cabinet for approval. This assessment formed the basis of the work that the Council was undertaking at Bridge and Bellingham sites to try to re-provide swimming water and for increasing sports hall provision in the south of the borough.

3.4. The strategy would have an embedded link to its action plan which would be available on the website and be updated regularly

The Committee members were invited to ask questions. The following key points were noted:

3.5. The Committee noted that the action plan for this strategy was circulated late which hindered the committee’s ability to comment on it. Therefore, the Committee’s comments on the action plan would be circulated by email after the meeting.

3.6. Lewisham used to be the 3^rd most active borough in London but had slipped down to 9. A member of the committee enquired whether an analysis had been done to understand why this downward shift had occurred. Although it was difficult to provide a concrete reason for this downward trend without running a full consultation, officers suspected that the Covid-19 pandemic influenced this decrease in physical activity.

3.7. A member of the Committee enquired whether an equalities impact assessment of the strategy had been undertaken to understand its impact on diverse communities. Nigel Bowness, the Healthwatch Lewisham representative on the Committee also commented that the equalities implications listed in the report were not comprehensive and just listed the duties. Officers informed the Committee that a full Equalities Impact Assessment had been undertaken and was currently being finalised. This assessment would list the impact of the strategy on all groups of people along with the steps being taken for mitigation of any negative impact.

3.8. A committee member highlighted that the way certain activities were being delivered sometimes hindered participation from diverse communities. For example, swimming pools at Glass Mill Leisure Centre had large glass windows allowing outsiders to see inside and discouraging some communities from attending.

3.9. In response to the need for more pool space in Lewisham, a committee member suggested exploring the possibility of having pools with higher temperatures for therapeutic purposes, and officers revealed ongoing discussions with Greenvale School and Watergate School to enhance access to their hydrotherapy pools outside of school hours.

3.10. A committee member proposed incorporating examples into the strategy, such as showcasing various activities in parks like park runs, Saturday football clubs, tennis, walking clubs, outdoor gyms, cricket, baby gyms, community gardening, bowls etc. However, officers informed the committee that this document served as a strategic framework rather than a platform for specific examples, citing advice received from Sports England.

3.11. Officers informed the Committee that they needed to conduct a mapping exercise to understand the various activities in the borough and to ensure that they endorsed it to the right people. Officers were engaging with London Sport to utilise their activity finder platform, where providers could promote their activities for free. Committee members were encouraged to inform officers of any activity providers they knew of.

3.12. The sports team and the parks team had been brought together under one head of service as the importance of parks in promoting physical activity was recognised. Through joint working, these teams had successfully redeveloped the basketball courts in Evelyn Green. Officers acknowledged the importance of addressing the basketball courts at Hilly Fields and were actively exploring costing and funding options to facilitate their improvement.

3.13. The importance of ensuring the inclusion of every group’s voice in the stakeholder forum was discussed by the Committee.

3.14. A member of the committee suggested that working with local sports icons was an engaging way of promoting physical activity. Officers agreed with this suggestion, expressing their preference for partnering not only with local sports icons but also with regular individuals who actively advocate for sports.

3.15. During the discussion, the use of terminology was highlighted, as individuals perceived sports, exercise and physical activity differently, and some found these terms intimidating. Officers acknowledged the importance of using the correct terminology in the strategy.

3.16. Given the small size of the sports and leisure team, the Committee enquired about how they would manage the implementation of the strategy and coordinate efforts across different Council directorates.

3.17. A Committee member raised the question about having more female gyms, and officers informed the Committee that the Council typically acts as a facilitator and enabler rather than a direct provider of such services.

3.18. A member of the Committee enquired about the impact of physical activity on the QRISK factor. The QRISK score was a system that was used to identify those patients who were at risk of coronary disease within the next 10 years.

3.19. The Committee was pleased to see dance being mentioned in the strategy as physical activity and a Committee member asked if a reference to Good Gyms may be added to the strategy.

3.20. Nigel Bowness welcomed the inclusive aspect of the strategy and suggested that it would be beneficial to include an analysis of the barriers to inclusion for different groups of people regarding physical activity.

3.21. The Chair of the Committee had the following specific comments regarding the content of the strategy:

·         The Chair stated that it would be beneficial to see some Lewisham-specific examples in the strategy. For example, on Page 3, extra text could be added that showcased the different activities that were already on offer in Lewisham.

·         The Chair suggested that some areas of the strategy needed to use more simple and plain language as the target audience for this document was the residents.

·         On Page 9 of the strategy, there was a mention of non-traditional spaces. The Chair asked if it could be spelt out what was meant by these spaces and if some examples could be given.

·         On Page 15, there was an example of the Healthy Walks programme which was around 20 years old. The Chair asked whether some recent examples could be provided.

·         The Chair enquired whether the strategy’s action plan was going to be appended to the strategy when it went to Mayor and Cabinet.

3.22. Officers responded that following the Chair’s suggestion, they would revisit some of the language used in the strategy and attempt to simplify it.

3.23. It was proposed that Page 19 of the strategy be revised to specify that the action plan was included with the strategy, along with outlining the methods for tracking progress in the implementing the strategy.

RESOLVED: That

·         the report be noted along with the comments made by the Committee and that the comments be reflected in the final strategy report that goes to Mayor and Cabinet.