Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies for absence.

Members were asked to declare any interests they had in the business on the agenda.

Councillor Naylor declared an “other disclosable interest” (ODI) in that he received free prescriptions.

Councillor Newcombe declared an “other disclosable interest” (ODI) in that he received free prescriptions.

The Director of Change and Programme Management to report on the receipt of any petitions submitted in accordance with the Council’s procedures

The meeting heard that no petitions had been received.

The Director of Change and Programme Management to report on the receipt of any questions, representations and statements of case submitted in accordance with the Council’s procedures.

The meeting heard that no questions, representations or statements of case had been received.

The Strategic Director, City Development and Neighbourhoods submits a report that seeks the views of the Heritage, Leisure and Sport Scrutiny Commission on the draft budget plans for the Culture, Heritage, Leisure and Sport portfolio.  The Commission is recommended to consider the draft budget proposals and make its comments to the Executive.

The Assistant City Mayor, Culture, Heritage, Leisure and Sport presented the 2013/14 draft Budget Proposals relating to the Culture, Heritage, Leisure and Sport portfolio.

The Assistant City Mayor explained that it was predicted that the current period of financial difficulty would continue beyond 2013 / 14 and further substantial savings would be required up to 2017. In order to make the necessary savings, efforts had been made to identify the best areas to target for economies. The Assistant City Mayor elaborated on the following proposals for making savings:

·         To remove the big screen in Humberstone Gate. If this was approved, the removal of the screen would incur some costs, but it was anticipated that the forecasted savings would be seen in 2014/ 15.

·         To implement a charge for the over 60’s of £1 per visit to leisure centres. It was however further proposed to introduce a leisure card at a cost of £5 per month, which would allow the over 60’s admission to city leisure centres for that month.  This would result in savings for people who were frequent users of the centres.

The Assistant City Mayor explained that he had attended the Forum for Older People where these proposals were discussed and the comments received from the Forum were positive.

·         To develop a soil processing facility so that soil could be removed from parks and be reused. If the soil could be recycled, savings could be made by 2014/15. It would probably take an officer about one year to make the necessary arrangements.

·         There were also proposals to identify further savings at DeMontfort Hall (DMH), Curve and Phoenix by greater sharing of management, staff and systems.

DeMontfort Hall (DMH), Curve and Phoenix

It was noted that the 2012 / 2013 budget for DMH, Curve and Phoenix was £2192,000 and a breakdown of this figure was requested. The Director of Culture and Neighbourhood Services responded that the approximate figures were as follows:

a)    DMH received £1m

b)    Curve received £790,000

c)    Phoenix received £280,000

Of the three, DMH was the only venue which received 100% of its funding from Leicester City Council. Curve and Phoenix received funding from outside organisations (such as the Arts Council).  Negotiations were already taking place with the venues to identify how savings could be made.  Councillor Cassidy, who as Chair of the Overview Select Committee had been invited to the meeting explained that he understood that the venues were willing to work together and it was felt that the budget cuts should not affect their viability.  The Chair added that she understood that the changes were also about providing a better service and not purely about making savings.  The Director, Culture and Neighbourhood Services commented that it would be a challenge to make the required savings of £190,000 by 2014/15 but it was hoped that by working with the relevant Chairs and Chief Executive, these savings could be realised. Members requested that updates on those discussions with the Chairs and Chief Executive, and also on  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

The meeting closed at 6.14 pm.