The track in action
THE LETTER SENT YESTERDAY TO THE CEO OF BRENT COUNCIL WORK TO REMOVE THE TRACK WAS DUE TO START TODAY,
Formal request to stop the removal of indoor track at Willesden Sports Centre
Dear Kim Wright, Chief Executive of Brent Council, and Councillor Muhammed Butt Leader of Brent Council
We are writing as Leaders of the Green and Liberal Democrat Groups on the Council to express our serious concerns regarding both the decision and the lack of consultation regarding the removal of the indoor athletics track at Willesden Sports Centre.
You are already aware of our groups’ perspectives on this from previous correspondence. However, this is our formal request to the council to pause on the work due to begin tomorrow to enable a meaningful period of consultation to take place.
It is our understanding that the Council’s position is that the Cabinet decision on 22nd June was a ‘final decision’ to remove the indoor track. However, the Cabinet paper does not make any reference to this. We also understand that this was not communicated to other parties, including Track Academy and Queen’s Park Harriers, until much later.
We therefore believe that the ability for Councillors to provide effective scrutiny was undermined. Had the decision to remove the indoor track been made public as part of the Cabinet papers, Councillors may have wished to call in the decision, as per the Council’s call-in protocol.
Our concern lies not only with your choice to remove the indoor track itself and the scant and in some cases misleading evidence that has been provided, but in the process you followed to make that decision.
This process has demonstrated a complete disregard for the perspectives of Brent residents as well as for Councillor input, scrutiny and the opportunity to represent our communities.
The fact that the decision to remove the indoor track was taken before the equality impact assessment is alarming. This calls into question the legitimacy of the decision made by officers and Cabinet.
The relationship between the Council and our local communities is vital. Although ceasing the planned renovation at this late stage would no doubt incur a financial cost, we believe that the cost of continuing when so many residents and users of the track feel that the Council has not listened to their concerns would incur an even more significant cost – the trust of residents across our borough.
There has already been significant negative press coverage of the Council’s plans for the Sports Centre and the campaign against the removal of the indoor track is growing amongst residents and has support from leading figures in athletics, include the CEO of Athletics England. We believe that without an urgent rethink on the removal of the indoor track, you risk doing further serious reputational damage to Brent Council.
We strongly urge you to use your positions to cease the intended work and to rapidly embark on a consultation process that properly engages with the community around the Track Academy, Queen’s Park Harriers and other regular users of the track, with appropriate opportunities for scrutiny from elected members of the Council.
Yours sincerely,
Cllr Mary Mitchell Cllr Anton Georgiou
Leader of the Green Group, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group
I can remember the 'Sport for All' investment programme, some 1970's socialist public health nonsense.
ReplyDeleteOnly Brent Council can turn a multi million pound sports investment into an own goal.
ReplyDeleteAsset disposal phase one?
ReplyDeleteThis looks like another case of matters being discussed at closed-door Policy Co-ordination Group meetings of Officers and Cabinet members, before the Cabinet actually has matters on its agenda at the monthly public meeting. There are no formal minutes of these meetings, and no publicly available information on what has been discussed, or the outcome of those discussions.
ReplyDeleteThings are being decided in secret, before the formal decision is made, with very little consideration (and ignoring anything that might be said by residents or non-Cabinet councillors) at the Cabinet meetings themselves.
Once again, this had led to a bad decision being made, because of the way Brent's long-running Council Leader prefers to carry out, and control, the Council's decision-making!
Ditto the new Brent Local Plan if you live in a Growth Area zone of devolution and exclusion. Developer First Brent.
ReplyDeleteI was Leader of Brent Council when the newly rebuilt Willesden Sports Centre was opened. This is how the local Newspaper covered the story in November 2006.
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"The revamped Willesden Sports Centre will open on 1 November.
Leisure management company Leisure Connection will operate the £16m centre, which is owned by Brent Council.
New facilities include a six-lane, 25m pool; a four-court sports hall; a health and fitness centre; a martial arts dojo and an indoor athletics ‘running tube’.
The sports centre will also provide a home for three of the borough’s sports clubs – Brent Dolphins Swimming Club, Queens Park Harriers and the Willesden Judo Club.
The leader of Brent Council, Paul Lorber, said: “The opening of Willesden is another example of how serious we are at the council about providing excellent sports provision in the borough. I am sure new people will get into sports and keeping fit when they’ve had the chance to use the facilities here.”
The revamped facility was designed to complement the neighbouring Capital City Academy, which has specialist sports college status."
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The Council objective at the time - supported by most Councillors - was to provide a modern Sports Centre offering as many sporting opportunities as possible - including athletics.
It is a shame that the current Labour Leadership of the Council wants to destroy the good work done 20 years ago and to deprive so many young people of the opportunity to participate in the sport of their choice.
The Campaigners fighting to save the running track have my full support.