Sport and Physical Activity - the Future of Church Farm and Copthall Leisure Centres

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linkedin Email this link

This consultation has now closed.

We would like to thank the 958 residents who took the time to complete our survey online or return a paper copy of the questionnaire. We also wish to thank the 445 residents who took the time to attend our drop-in sessions, focus groups, or send through written submissions. Without this valuable input the consultation would not have been possible.

You can read the full findings from the consultation here and how we acted on what you told us under ‘We asked, You said, We did’.

All the responses were collated and analysed and formed the basis of recommendations that

We would like to thank the 958 residents who took the time to complete our survey online or return a paper copy of the questionnaire. We also wish to thank the 445 residents who took the time to attend our drop-in sessions, focus groups, or send through written submissions. Without this valuable input the consultation would not have been possible.

You can read the full findings from the consultation here and how we acted on what you told us under ‘We asked, You said, We did’.

All the responses were collated and analysed and formed the basis of recommendations that were presented to Councillors at the Policy and Resources Committee meeting on the 16th December 2015. The recommendations included the location for the new Church Farm Leisure Centre to be located on Victoria Recreation Ground as well as the facilities mixes for both Victoria Recreation Ground and Copthall.

The paper’s recommendations were unanimously agreed upon and the committee gave the project permission to move to the next phase, the project is currently involved in planning the next phase of consultation where residents will be able to see more detailed plans of the new sites.

The plans have now been developed in full and you can view the plans here.

Overview

The Sports and Physical Activity (SPA) project was set up in 2012 to review the council’s provision of leisure services, with the aim of ensuring that its five leisure centres deliver an improved and integrated offer for sport and physical activity in Barnet which can lead to increased participation and better health and wellbeing of all residents. The overarching objectives of this work are to:

  • provide fit for purpose facilities to our residents
  • improve public health outcomes across the borough
  • deliver a service that the council can afford.

Over the last three years we have consulted and engaged with residents and stakeholders extensively as part of a wider SPA engagement programme. These consultations have allowed us to understand residents' opinions and views surrounding the current offering at the borough’s leisure centres. Furthermore, the consultation has enabled us to identify the various barriers preventing residents from using the facilities and taking part in physical activity. Together with the Needs Assessment (2012) and the Feasibility Study (2014) the consultation has contributed to the development of a proposal for improving the leisure offering through means of upgrading the leisure centres.

The council’s oldest leisure centres are Church Farm (built in the 1960s) and Barnet Copthall (built in the 1970s). Although both centres are fully functional they are currently expensive to run and will require immediate investment to bring them up to modern, cost-efficient standards that will meet the needs of an increasing population.

With this in mind, and as a result of what residents have told us, we are looking to re-provide the Church Farm and Copthall leisure centres and procure a new leisure management contract that will focus on improving the health and wellbeing of all Barnet’s residents.

A summary of how you can take part in the consultation is under 'Give us your views' at the bottom of this page.

For more detailed information on what is being proposed in relation to Church Farm and Copthall leisure centres please take the time to read our SPA Consultation Document, our presentation and FAQs.

To support the Consultation Document we have also prepared the following:

Background information to this project can also be found in the Revised Outline Business Case, including the Feasibility Study and the Needs Assessment.


Why We Are Consulting

Using what residents have already told us since the SPA project first began in 2012, we have prepared a proposal for the re-location of the existing Church Farm and possible facilities that could be there as well as at the Copthall site.

Before making any recommendations we are asking you to consider our proposals. Regardless of whether you are currently using our leisure centres or not, please share your views and opinions.

Your feedback will be used to form recommendations which will be presented to the council in early December 2015. These proposals will enable us to commission detailed designs for the two new buildings and give us one alternative site to take forward into a planning process. Further detail consultation will follow in 2016 as part of the statuary planning process.

This consultation has now closed.
  • Feedback Updated 24 February 2016

    Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linkedin Email this link

    We asked

    We asked you to share your views on the future of leisure centres in Barnet. Specifically we asked where you wanted to see the new leisure centre, to the north of the borough, built at either Danegrove Playing Field or Victoria Recreation Ground. We also asked what facilities you would most like to see in this facility and the new Copthall. Finally we wanted to understand what other services you could see yourself receiving from your local leisure centre.

    You said

    The consultation found that residents were very positive about the proposals to re-provide two of the council’s leisure centres. Residents expressed that swimming pools, learner pools, gyms and cafés were the most important facilities to consider whereas sports halls, crèches, climbing walls and diving split opinion.

    There was a balance of opinion among residents in the surveys concerning the location of the new facility to the north of the borough with 35% preferring Danegrove; 34% preferring Victoria Recreation Ground; 7% disagreeing with both and 24% not having an opinion on which site should be used. However Victoria Recreation Ground was the overall preferred option in the drop-in sessions, focus groups and written submissions.

    65% of residents indicated that they would consider accessing library services from their local leisure facility. Less than half of residents indicated that they would consider accessing GP or pharmacy services, however 60% of residents told us that they would consider receiving health advice from a modern centre.

    We did

    The results were used to develop a recommendation paper that went to Policy and Resources Committee on December 16th 2015; the recommendations included the location for the new Church Farm Leisure Centre to be located on Victoria Recreation Ground as well as the facilities mixes for both Victoria Recreation Ground and Copthall.

    The paper’s recommendations were unanimously agreed upon and the committee gave the project permission to move to the next phase, the project is currently involved in planning the next phase of consultation where residents will be able to see more detailed plans of the new sites.