Those Members of the public who have registered to speak will be entitled to address the meeting for up to three minutes
Minutes:
Eileen Gray
Eileen Gray made the following statement:
“I am a resident of Market Deeping and long-term user of the Deepings Leisure Centre for over forty years. In July when the Leisure Centre was closed, forty years of my life was taken away from me. I have used the Centre as a member of staff, a teacher, a member and instructor of the life-saving club and many other avenues. I am heartbroken that this has happened. I swam for an hour a day and now have to go to Spalding to continue this. People using this facility include an amputee, an octogenarian, a lady in remission of cancer and a carer receiving one hour respite from caring. Why are these people being denied these facilities. Perhaps you can tell me?”
Jack Little
Jack Little made the following statement:
“I am a resident of Deeping St James and have been for the last decade and I have enjoyed the facilities throughout that time. Sadly since 2013 there has been no dialogue and virtually zero action regarding a replacement Leisure Centre. I am pleased that today there are positive options on the table and I would implore Councillors to select option 3 as the best investment for the future – the next 25 years. Option 2 may seem like a nice option, costing less, however, we know that in 20 years’ time there will need to be a plan in place for a new Leisure Centre. I have spent a lifetime in sport since the age of seven and until now as a coach, participant, competitor and member of various club committees. It is really important that this facility is made available again as soon as humanly possible. I see that target dates have been set, which is good. I am also very pleased to see that the project application with the football foundation is also contained within the papers, which is direly required. Local team players are leaving for other training facilities with floodlights. I also note that a core part of the proposals is dependent on an agreed lease of land by schools and I do hope this is taken incredibly seriously as agreement is vital for success.”
Peter Gray
Peter Gray made the following statement:
“All of the three options that have been thrown into the arena are a distraction from what is going on. It tends to divide and conquer people as you get different views coming through. Initially I thought that the Leisure Centre should get repaired because it is needed now. In hindsight, I thought that maybe I was being selfish. I am in my 75th year and use the Leisure Centre four times a week for swimming. However, this doesn’t affect just me, there are kids within the swimming club that start to blossom and have a three year window to access the best training possible to make the most of their opportunities. I am concerned also about the lack of disclosure from involved private companies. This is a serious issue.”
Robbie Tyler
Robbie Tyler made the following statement:
“I’ve been in The Deepings all my life, I am a martial arts trainer and fitness instructor so am heavily involved in the leisure industry. The closure of the Deepings Leisure Centre has impacted our club massively. We train two to three classes a night, Monday to Friday. We have gradings, seminars and other things going on. We have been able to find a small space to continue classes but not to the same level as before. We have had students get to world championship level and those opportunities will start dropping back if we don’t get facilities soon. We are not the only club affected, some have had to move areas and some clubs have been lost. The quicker these facilities can return, the better.”