Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Council bid to save money by outsourcing sports & leisure
Haringey Council is saving £500,000 a year by outsourcing sport and leisure services to an external leisure company from December.
The 20 year contract relates to the council's three main leisure facilities, Park Road, Tottenham Green and Broadwater Farm, with a three year arrangement for White Hart Lane Community Sports Centre.
The Council claim that the new service will:
- Provide £500,000 savings a year
- Cost significantly less than the in-house operation over 20 years
- Secure significant immediate capital investment in new facilities and maintenance (at unspecified levels)
- Get more people using the facilities
- Reduce the net cost to the council
- Improve service and customer satisfaction
- Maintain access for disadvantaged residents through discounted pricing and programming arrangements
- Contribute to the council's 40 per cent CO2 reduction target by 2015
- Increase participation in sport and physical activity
The contract award is now subject to a review with the new contractor expected to be announced around 28th September.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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Where's the bit about existing staff being kept to the same contracts and pay?
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Permalink Reply by Stuart on
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That's in the TUPE Regulations 2006, which apply regardless.
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Useful. But I'd like to see this being the first line of the checklist, and something about no redundancies for at least the first ten years. LBH are just doing this so they don't look bad when half the workforce is laid off by G4S, or whichever other leech gets the contract.
How else can they do it for less money, when they have shareholders to pay first?
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Sorry, I don't share your cynicism.
Greenwich Leisure (who Maddy mentions) are a not-for-profit organisation - details here - and if you've ever been to the Clissold Park Leisure Centre (one of the ones they run), you'll know that they do a far far better job on creating an enjoyable customer experience than Haringey have ever done. Clean pools, clean changing rooms, excellent facilities - even the cafe is decent. SInce discovering Clissold Park a few years ago, I've never been back to Park Road.
And LBH are doing it to save money - which benefits all of us as council tax payers. Plus the place is far more likely to be run properly in the hands of someone like Greenwich Leisure, who have greater experience and resources.
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It's not cynicism, it's ideology. If they are truly non-profit I may bend a little.
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Permalink Reply by Michael Anderson on
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GLL is also a cooperative and is owned by the entire workforce.
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Permalink Reply by Maddy on
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This has been in the pipeline for ages. It will probably go to Greenwich Leisure, who run most of London's pools and sports centres already. Personally I hope whoever takes it on will do a better job of running Park Road pools, particularly in terms of keeping the water clean, as it is often disgusting.
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Permalink Reply by JJ B on
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Yep. Took a visiting friend to Tottenham Green to look around and he didn't want to use it. I won't go until it is improved. Looked so...yesterday and dirty. Sorry, I thought that I would go there often when I moved to Philip Lane just around the corner but it needs improvement first.
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