Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillors  Dawood and Solanki.

Members are asked to declare any interests they may have in the business to be discussed.

There were no declarations of interest.

The Minutes of the meeting of the Heritage, Culture, Leisure, and Sport Scrutiny Commission held 26 April 2021 are attached and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

AGREED:

That the minutes of the Heritage, Culture, Leisure, and Sport Scrutiny Commission meeting held on 28 April 2021 be confirmed as a correct record.

Members are asked to note the membership of the commission for 2021/22:

Councillor Halford (Chair)

Councillor Ali (Vice-Chair)

Councillor Dr Barton

Councillor Cole

Councillor Dawood

Councillor Dr Moore

Councillor Nangreave

Councillor Shelton

(1 non-grouped place currently unallocated)

RESOLVED:

That the membership of the Heritage, Culture, Leisure and Tourism Scrutiny Commission be noted as:

Councillor Halford (Chair)

Councillor Ali (Vice-Chair)

Councillor Dr Barton

Councillor Cole

Councillor Dawood

Councillor Solanki

Councillor Shelton

Members are asked to note that meetings of the Commission for the 2021/22 municipal year are scheduled to be held on:

Tuesday 8 June 2021

Tuesday 24 August 2021

Tuesday 12 October 2021

Tuesday 30 November 2021

Tuesday 11 January 2021

Tuesday 1 March 2021

RESOLVED:

That the dates of meetings of the Heritage, Culture, Leisure and Tourism Scrutiny Commission for 2021/22 be noted.

The Chair noted her thanks to the Public Health team for their work during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Monitoring Officer to report on the receipt of any petitions submitted in accordance with the Council’s procedures.

The Monitoring Officer reported that no petitions had been received.

The Monitoring Officer to report on the receipt of any questions,

representations or statements of case received.

A question has been received from Mary Baker, as follows:

·         Why is Saffron Lane Athletics Stadium being turned into a football ground?

·         Why did the council not apply for heritage money?

·         Why can’t the necessary football pitch be located on Aylestone Park?

·         What team wants to be sited at Saffron Lane Athletics Stadium ?

This will be considered in accordance with the Council’s Constitution under the Scrutiny Procedure Rule 10.

A question had been received from Mary Baker which was considered in accordance with the Council’s Constitution, Part E Procedure Rule 10.

The Chair invited Mrs Baker to present her questions to the Members of the Commission.

Mrs Baker put her questions to the Members of the Commission as follows:

·         Why is Saffron Lane Athletics Stadium being turned into a football ground?

·         Why did the council not apply for heritage money? 

·         Why can’t the necessary football pitch be located on Aylestone Park?

·         What team wants to be sited at Saffron Lane Athletics Stadium?

Andrew Beddow, Head of Sports, responded that the Saffron Lane Athletics Stadium would remain an athletics-first facility, and that the changes to the facility were being made in consultation with England Athletics. Any in-field sports at the facility would be played during the quiet period for athletics. Funding was coming from the Section 106 obligations and that if further funding was available it would be considered. The Stadium was chosen for in-field sports due to its existing flood lights and grandstands. There had been interest from teams regarding being sited at the facility.

Mrs Baker expressed further concerns that football being played at the stadium would harm the field for athletic use. Councillor Clair, Deputy City Mayor for Culture, Leisure, Sport, and Regulatory Services, responded by further clarifying that field sports would not be played on the ground during the athletics season, and that current users of the facility would be fully consulted.

In response to concerns raised by Councillor Shelton that he, as Ward Councillor for the area, had not been consulted about the changes, Councillor Clair stated that emails had been sent regarding the changes, and that Councillor Cutkelvin, the other Ward Councillor for the area, had been briefed.

Officers will provide an overview of the Heritage, Culture, Leisure, and Tourism portfolio. The Commission is recommended to note the overview and use the information to inform the Commission’s work for the coming municipal year.

The Head of Sports and the Director of Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment each presented an overview of activities from their service areas relevant to the Heritage, Culture, Leisure and Tourism Scrutiny Commission.

Members were asked to note the presentations which would help them to set the Commission’s work programme for the forthcoming year.

In response to Member’s questions it was noted that:

·         New Parks Leisure Centre was currently closed due to staff being used for the testing and vaccinations efforts. The aim was to reopen the Centre in September.

·         Equipment from the gym at New Parks Leisure Centre had been moved to sports halls.

·         Large-scale events were not possible at the moment but there were ambitions to hold some in the later months.

·         Some examples of support for race equality from the TCI department were the securing of a £10k Government grant for activities related to the  Windrush Generation. This would  enable school resources to be developed together with new interpretation panels for the African Caribbean Centre, the new Leicester Stories Gallery, and external exhibitions on issues such as the expulsion of South Asians from Uganda. With regards to the learning programme, this had been challenging with museums closed due to covid-19.  The learning offer has been reviewed and new learning resources are being developed. School assemblies to promote this work were beginning taking place.

The Director of Public Health will present a verbal update on the continued impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Sports Services in the city.  

The Head of Sports provided an update to the Commission on the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on Sports Services. It was noted that:

·         The position of Sports Services had largely remained the same since the last meeting of the Commission.

·         Health and Fitness facilities had been positive in attracting customers back.

·         The aim was to reopen the remaining closed facilities other than New Parks Leisure Centre on 21 June in line with the proposed lifting of Covid restrictions. Social restrictions would remain in place at the opened facilities.  

·         Existing memberships were frozen and would restart once facilities reopened.

·         Advanced booking for gym sessions was still required, once social distancing was no longer required then booking wouldn’t be required.

The Director of Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment will present a verbal update on the continued impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment Services in the city.

The Director of Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment Services provided an update on the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on TCI Services. It was noted that:

·         Pending the Government’s decision on the proposed 21 June date for lifting restrictions, museums in the city would reopen.

·         Most shows originally scheduled for summer at De Montfort Hall had been moved to autumn. If social distancing measures had to remain in place after 21 June, then the gigs scheduled for summer would likely also have to be rescheduled.

·         De Montfort Hall would be unlikely to host indoor shows until September.

The Director of Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment submits a presentation on the planned Leicester Stories Gallery at Leicester Museum and Art Gallery.  

The Director of Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment submitted a presentation on the proposed Leicester Stories Gallery.

The Deputy City Mayor, Culture, Leisure, Sport, and Regulatory Services introduced the item. Noting that the new Community Gallery would be built in an existing office and library space. The aim of the Gallery was to celebrate Leicester’s diverse communities, and the aim was to open the Gallery in April 2022.

Clare Hudson, Project Manager for Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment, gave a presentation on the proposals, it was noted that:

·         The total budget for the development would be £350,000, funded by Arts Council England’s NPO programme.

·         The stories focused on would be from the 1950s onwards.

·         The co-production process included focus groups representative of the demographics of Leicester. Some in the process would become Leicester Voices, helping curate content for the exhibition.

·         A youth focus group would help create photography and imagery for the exhibition.

·         A film would be created about a Leicester house through the generations, to be displayed in the exhibitions. The process to find a film maker for this was ongoing.

·         A poet had been commissioned to write a poem to be displayed in the exhibition.

·         The People’s Space would be a temporary exhibition area, which would be replenished yearly.

·         There would be an activity space with seating and tables.

·         The aim was for the co-production process to work with individuals rather than organisations, and for the Council to be facilitators.

·         Work was ongoing to seek members of the focus group from Somali and Chinese backgrounds.

·         Community organisations had been approached with regards to having representation on the focus group.

Members of the Commission suggested that Ward Councillors be contacted to make links with any community organisations that could be helpful.

Members of the Commission suggested that an effort should be made to make sure a wide diversity of communities in the city were represented.

AGREED:

                        That:

1.    The Commission supported the plans for the Leicester Stories Gallery.

2.    The Commission recommended that a wide range of communities be consulted.

3.    The Commission requested to receive updates on the project.

The Director of Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment submits a presentation on the planned Rocket Round Leicester trail and interactive programme,

The Director of Tourism, Culture, and Inward Investment submitted a presentation on the proposed Rocket Round Leicester programme. It was noted that this was a part of the wider effort to animate the city centre. The programme would be a ten-week trail from July to September. The aim was to connect businesses and artists to the community throughout the city.

Chris Hackett, Deputy Festival and Events Manager, presented the item. It was noted that:

·         The programme would involve forty uniquely painted rocket sculptures being placed around the city to create a free interactive art trail. These rockets would be designed exclusively for Leicester.

·         Themed activities would accompany the trail.

·         It was hoped that the programme would create revenue and grow tourism in city, as part of the post-pandemic recovery.

·         It was hoped that the programme would raise the profile of the Council and give direct access to new audiences.

·         38 schools and educational establishments would take part in the Junior Jet programme,

·         Sponsorships would be available for the programme, with the Council logo being featured across the materials for the programme.

·         The programme was being hosted by Wild in Arts, a national events company.

·         The programme app would showcase experiences in the city centre and have special offers. The app would also record engagement with the programme.

·         The programme events would all be free and would include activities such as walks, with themes such as health and wellbeing.

AGREED:

                        That:

1.    The Commission requested that further updates be provided on this programme at future meetings of the Commission.

For Members consideration, Work Programme for 2021/22 is attached.

The Chair noted that the Work Programme was in-progress, and asked that if Members of the Commission had any ideas for future items, that they contact the Chair or the Scrutiny Policy Officer to let them know.

There being no other business, the meeting closed at 7.08pm.