To receive a presentation and question and answer session on the Campus and Operational Delivery Programme, including Leisure, from Programme Director Mark Stone and Project Manager Lucy Murray-Brown.
Minutes:
The Chairman welcomed Lucy Murray-Brown, Wiltshire Council’s Project Director for the Campus Operational Delivery Programme, who was going the give the Board a flavour of what the Campus concept was.
Until recently the project was known as Work Place Transformation Programme, in February of this year, a paper was taken at Cabinet with the concept of developing campus sites across the county, allowing the Council to look at the delivery of services, rationalising the estate and delivering ‘more for less’. She went to explain that the core criteria to all campus buildings include shared reception, community space, accessible IT provision, personal care facilities and catering facilities. Application of these principles will potentially save 40% in operating costs across the county.
Indicative sequence of events
Initial Area Board meeting – autumn 2012
Audit and research work – summer – winter 2012
Community consultation phase one – autumn/winter 2012
Community consultation phase two – spring 2013
Area Board consideration – summer 2013
Council approval – summer/autumn 2013
Detailed design, planning – autumn 2013
Construction – spring/summer 2014
Community Campus in place spring 2015
Cllr Hawker commented that Westbury had a clean sheet of paper with which to start, as yet no one has any ideas of how this will progress, however it is very clear that facilities are being removed from the centre of the town, such as the Post Office and Doctors Surgery and it is essential to keep the rest of the facilities within the town centre. This view was echoed. The Vision for Westbury scoping study clearly indicates the need for maintaining the town centre and developing it, there are ideas to expand the library, by bringing in additional services and putting in a lift so that people are able to access the upper floors. Members also expressed the need for new buildings or refurbishments to have appropriate disabled access. Lucy Murray-Brown explained that the Vision document would be looked at carefully and that she was aware of the disabled access issue and that when developing new buildings appropriate access would be essential.
Members from Westbury Leisure Alliance voiced their concerns over the ambitious timeline with construction potentially starting in Spring/Summer 2014 and the desperate need in West Wiltshire for outdoor facilities, assurance was sought that outdoor facilities that currently exist would not be sold off. Lucy Murray-Brown explained that the presentation and the timeline were generic, she also believed that the Council were developing a pitch strategy and that she would forward details, but there were no plans to remove existing provision. She was unable to confirm whether or not existing estate would be sold off until the business plan was developed.
Members of the public felt that the timescales should be brought forward to coincide with the DC Leisure Contract and that this opportunity should not be missed. The Chairman agreed to address this point. Cllr Hawker explained to the meeting that the timelines were indicative of what the Council would like to achieve, the timings were not set in stone but a guide.