Agenda item

To receive an update from representatives from the Leisure Trust.

The Chairman welcomed representatives from the Leisure Trust to the meeting.

The Chairman of the Leisure Trust, Peter Lemon reminded those present that Alive Leisure were now half way through their first full year of trading.  He informed the Panel that Alive Leisure had recently held their first public Annual General Meeting which had been attended by a few members of the public.

The Chairman of the Leisure Trust explained that he was nervous at the outset of the complex arrangements, but all involved had worked together and structures were in place.  The Chairman of the Leisure Trust explained that the Trust and the Council were working together to resolve some outstanding issues.  He referred to the budget and efficiency savings being considered by the Council and acknowledged that the Trust would not be exempt from this and would work to be as efficient as possible.

The Panel was reminded that an Alive Leisure Board had been established and the Chairman of the Leisure Trust commented that they were very enthused and an active board who dedicated a lot of time and effort to the Trust on a voluntary basis.

The Chairman of the Leisure Trust clarified that, contrary to a recent report in the press, Alive Leisure had achieved a £100,000 surplus after the profit sharing arrangement with the Council.  The £200,000 reported in the budget was the seed funding which had been provided by the Council for the start-up of the arrangements.

The Panel received a presentation from representatives of the Leisure Trust as attached.

The Chief Executive of Alive Leisure reported on Key Performance Indicators and Key Business Plan Priorities.  The Senior Development Manager and Leisure Development Manager provided information on sport and leisure development including events and grant funding opportunities.

The Head of Programming and Marketing provided the Panel with an update on improvements made to Alive Oasis, the Alive rewards scheme and the Corn Exchange Programming.

The Chairman thanked the representatives from Alive Leisure for their presentation and invited questions and comments from the Panel, as summarised below.

Councillor Moriarty addressed the Panel under Standing Order 34.  He thanked officers for their presentation.  He referred to the information provided by the Head of Programming and Marketing and asked if they knew in advance that the pantomime of Robin Hood would not be as popular as previous shows.  He also asked if the Rural Transport Fund was used to bring people in to the Open Day.  Councillor Moriarty asked for an update on the online bookings system.

The Head of Programming and Marketing explained that she knew in advance that Robin Hood was not one of the strongest titles for a Pantomime.  She informed those present that there were five key Pantomimes, the strongest being Snow White, which was performed last year, so the decision had been taken to perform the weakest titled pantomime after the most popular.  The Head of Programming and Marketing explained that the same Pantomime could not be done every year and they had to be rotated.

The Senior Development Manager responded to Councillor Moriarty’s query regarding the Rural Transport Fund.  He explained that people had to apply to get funding from the Rural Transport Fund and this was usually done through the Village Sports Co-ordinators.  The Senior Development Manager explained that all relevant publications produced by Alive Leisure contained information on the Rural Development Fund.  He informed those present that the Rural Transport Fund had not previously been used to bring in people to the open day, but this was something that could be investigated in the future.

The Head of Programming and Marketing provided the Panel with an update on the provision of the online bookings system.  She explained that the bookings system used by Lynnsport had been inherited from the Borough Council.  There was a lot of work involved to introduce the online bookings component to the system and work was ongoing to get it live.  Problems and delays had been encountered and it was a complicated system to set up.  Alive Leisure was pushing to get the system live, but at the moment it was in the hands of the external provider, and it was likely that it would be introduced in the spring.  The Chairman of Alive Leisure explained that he was frustrated with the lack of progress, but it was out of his control.

The Portfolio Holder for ICT, Leisure and Public Space asked if the reason the Pantomime sales were down were because the Princess Theatre in Hunstanton were putting on a Pantomime this year.  The Head of Programming and Marketing commented that she felt it was a factor, as this was the first time in a number of years that there had been local competition and the market had been split.  She explained that some schools had cancelled their Pantomime booking and given the reason that they were going to Hunstanton instead.

In response to a question from Councillor Squire, the Head of Programming and Marketing explained that some of the cancelled places had now been refilled, but normally the schools performances of the Pantomime were sold out by March.  Councillor Squire congratulated Alive Leisure on putting on an Autism friendly Pantomime performance but commented that she was aware that some families were put off by the cost and had decided to go to Norwich instead.  The Head of Programming and Marketing explained that the Autism friendly performance cost the same as all other performances and was cheaper than Norwich.

The Vice Chairman, Councillor Bambridge asked what Alive Leisure would do to promote Arts and Culture and if alternative venues other than the Corn Exchange would be considered.  The Head of Programming and Marketing explained that lots of ideas had been considered.  A Sadler’s Wells performance would be put on in the Corn Exchange and the Corn Exchange would be the first venue in the Country to show a matinee performance and two local schools were already involved.  The Head of Programming and Marketing explained that they were always investigating ways to broaden their offer and were looking to put on a ballet designed for children in the summer.  Working with Creative Arts East Alive Leisure was also looking to hold a theatre performance and workshop at Alive Oasis.

Councillor Squire referred to the membership options for Alive Leisure facilities and asked why a peak/off peak membership package was not available.  The Head of Programming and Marketing explained that presently there were a lot of different membership options and in the future simpler packages would be looked at which could include peak/off peak membership.

In response to a further question from Councillor Squire the Head of Programming and Marketing explained that she worked with various promoters and was always looking to put on a varied programme of events. 

The Chairman of Alive Leisure Trust hoped that the presentation had provided information on how Alive Leisure worked to continue to improve and enhance their offerings whilst meeting their charitable objectives.  He commented that the Trust had been open and honest and reported the bad along with the good.

The Chairman thanked the representatives from Alive Leisure for their report.

RESOLVED: (i) The update was noted.

(ii) The Panel continue to receive updates on the work of Alive Leisure.