Agenda item

 The Sport and Physical Activity Team Manager introduced the report and provided an overview of the Sport and Physical Activity Team programmes and activities in 2021. The report also highlighted the forthcoming Hillingdon Sport and Physical Activity Strategy.

It was reported that the Sport and Physical Activity Team’s programme offered a wide range of sports, physical activity and places for participation such as community halls,  sport clubs,  young  people’s  centres,  libraries, open  spaces and parks.  The team worked with residents, sports clubs and specialists, National Governing Bodies for Sport, local partners and services to ensure that opportunities were provided to meet local needs.

The current Sport and Physical Activity Team was established in 2017.  Programmes and activities were overseen by the team and had been delivered through commissioning instructors and external operators.  Programmes were developed in the context of other strategic plans including the Older People’s Plan, the Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy, and the Hillingdon Obesity Strategy.  Regular performance updates were provided to monitor progress against the action plans supporting these strategies.  Data drawn from the Active Lives Survey and the Public Health Outcomes Framework was used in the development of the programmes. 

Following Member questions around data, it was explained that the Active Lives Survey was a Sport England survey and had been running for around 10 years. It was a random survey sent to people across the UK to complete and asked questions around exercise and the types of exercise undertaken. For children, this was an online survey.

It was acknowledged that although swimming was provided through the operator GLL, further work needed to be done in this area to encourage more children in Hillingdon to learn to swim. It was noted that Mickersize was an exercise commissioned by the Council and was beneficial for people with dementia.

Members commented that it would have been useful to see data in relation to the number of people using gym equipment in parks. It was explained that discussions with colleagues in Green Spaces would be needed to identify if using monitors to capture footfall would be feasible and robust. 

In terms of the introduction of the £5 charge at tennis courts in May 2021, it was noted that bookings were generally down. However, the introduction of the fee allowed the team to collect data where new users could be identified and the usage of the courts could be monitored. This data and income from fees and charges was then used to make improvements and renovations to increase the quality of the courts.  It was confirmed that since the introduction of the charge, an income of £19000 had been generated and money was being used to clean and improve the sites. The Committee heard that it was challenging to find accredited tennis coaches to attend all sites across the Borough but that a tennis development plan is being considered to expand a range of community tennis offers across the sites.

During Members questions, it was explained that conversations to encourage activities for children diagnosed as obese was ongoing with the Hillingdon Public Health team

The Committee thanked officers for the uplifting and informative presentation and were impressed by the initiatives in place.

RESOVLED:

That the Committee:

1.    Noted the current work programme of the Sport and Physical Activity Team.

2.    Agreed to review the Sport and Physical Activity Strategy at a future date.