LIBERAL DEMOCRAT QUESTION 5
Question(s) to the Mayor from Councillor Gary Hopkins (Knowle Ward)
Subject: Jubilee Pool
- Now that it is fully clear that the real reason for the planned closure of Jubilee Pool is to
prevent choice and get Jubilee users to go to Hengrove to prop up its finances, will the
Mayor now apologise to the thousands of campaigners that he attempted to mislead
with his “consultation” and communications?
Having disentangled the long grass that the Mayor wrapped around this issue, the Cross Party
Working Group put in the clearest possible unanimous recommendation for the pool to reopen
rapidly whilst longer term options are considered. - Will the Mayor now use the lockdown weeks to get fully prepared to reopen this vital
facility for mental and physical health as soon as national regulations allow; if we are
pitched into Tier 3 after lockdown will he prioritise the reopening of this and other
facilities that have positive health benefits?
REPLY:
1 The consultation is precipitated by the fact that the operator informed us of notice to
terminate the agreement following the Covid restrictions. The actual situation regarding
COVID restrictions and reduced usage has not changed.
We continue to support a community led solution for the pool, despite the impact on finances
at Hengrove. Please let us know when you have worked with the community to bring forward a
sustainable business plan.
2 During the second lock down we estimate the economic hit to the city to be in the area of
£54m pounds a month, of which only around £10m is so far covered by government
commitments. To date we have taken a phased approach to re-opening leisure facilities and in
partnership with our operators have sought to do this in the most cost effective and safe way.
Together with our operators we will continue to monitor the situation and take decisions
accordingly.
Our priority therefore has to be effective management of the funds we do have at a time when
all our pools need support. That is why we will support Hengrove Leisure centre to re-open as
the primary provision for the south of Bristol. Hengrove has 5x as many users and much more
use, with more residents and more schools using it, even in the Jubilee catchment area. It
remains essential that we protect and prioritise the most popular pool that provides a bigger
service first. When all of our pools and leisure centres are in need of financial support, it is a
very short sighted approach that prioritises the lowest usage pool over all others.
Bristol South Pool is also scheduled to reopen in January 2021, increasing our south offer
even further. For the longer term, the fact the newer pool provides the biggest and newest
service and is sustainable without additional lifetime costs is the reason the Councillor
supported the business plan for Hengrove in 2010, acknowledging that Jubilee Pool would
close. What has changed from your decision then that was predicated on the fact that Bristol
South needed a modernised, sustainable pool offer?