Former Wycombe District Sports Facility Strategy 2015 to 2020

This strategy will look at indoor sports provision in terms of swimming pools, sports hall, squash courts, health and fitness stations and indoor bowls.

It will use the Sport England Sports Facility Calculator for determining levels of provision for swimming pools, sports hall, and indoor bowls. There are however no national standards for the number of squash courts or the numbers of health and fitness stations per 1,000 population. Therefore the standard used for squash courts is based on the Active People results and demand, while the fitness stations is based on the average number for the South East.

The analysis will assess the current level of supply, the current demand, demand in 2033 based on the projected population and also the current and future shortfalls in provision.

The current and future scenarios will be modelled for each type of indoor facility, as follows:

• current – this will use the 2012 based ONS census data with supply from the audit in 2014. Current population is therefore for the purposes of this strategy 173,300
• future - 2033 scenario will use population projections up to 2033, with supply from the indoor sports audit in 2014, plus the inclusion of planned facilities that have been awarded planning permission. Projected population by 2033 is around 193,400. This population growth will impact on the need for more facilities

To get an accurate picture of the current level of supply the base data from the 2009 strategy has been updated to reflect the current levels of provision in terms of:

• swimming pools – square metres of pool space
• sports halls – number of badminton courts
• squash courts – number of courts
• health and fitness – number of stations
• indoor bowls – number of rinks

An assessment has been carried out which identifies the overall level of provision in and around the district using Sport’s England’s sports facilities database Spogo and the Sport England standards for provision based on 2012 population data.

The council has 3 indoor centres in the urban centres:

1. Wycombe Sports Centre, High Wycombe
2. Court Garden Leisure Complex, Marlow
3. Risborough Springs Swimming and Fitness Centre, Princes Risborough

The latter facility does not have a sports hall, unlike the other centres. The current numbers take account of the changes which will result from the opening of the new Wycombe Leisure Centre in January 2016 and the closure of the current Wycombe Sports Centre in December 2015.

In addition many indoor sports facilities are provided by schools and by clubs, run by committed volunteers and accessible to residents for nominal charges or membership fees in most cases. Health and fitness is the exception, where the majority provider is the private sector.

The following analysis presents the results of the supply and demand analysis detailed by sport – the summary of which is shown in the table above. The 2033 demand projections are based on a population of 193,400.

The analysis has been based upon the level of provision identified in Sport England’s Sports Facilities Calculator for swimming pools of 10.68 sq.m per 1,000 population.

The figures exclude Wycombe Rye Lido which is outdoors and not open all year round and those facilities which are not available for community use as they require membership. It includes the new Wycombe Leisure Centre figures and not the current Wycombe Sports Centre figures. The transfer between these two centres is due in December 2015 and January 2016.

Due to the size of catchment areas some of the former Wycombe District’s residents will visit facilities outside of the former district and therefore facilities over the former district boundary may cater for some of the demand. There is one facility identified within 3km of the former Wycombe district, a publicly accessible site (Stoke Mandeville), which has the potential to cater for demand in the north of the former Wycombe District, with the former Wycombe District residents travelling outside the former district boundary to access facilities.

The analysis has been based upon the average levels of provision identified in Sport England’s Sports Facilities Calculator for sports halls of 0.28 badminton courts per 1,000 population.

There are a number of sports hall facilities identified as being in the 3km buffer area of former Wycombe District. The Beacon Centre (to the west of the former district) and Stoke Mandeville Stadium (north of the former district) are both public facilities that have the potential to cater for demand in the former Wycombe District, particularly around the fringes. There is also a dual use site (Mandeville Upper School) to the north of Wycombe, which may also provide an amenity for residents in the north of the former district.

The Buckinghamshire Facilities Strategy Report identifies planned facilities at Henry Floyd School (Aylesbury Vale), Amersham School (Chiltern) and Chesham Community College (Chiltern) that will also impact the supply of facilities in the future.

There is no recommended standard for the provision of health and fitness stations but the average for the South East based on figures from Sport England is 5.23 health and fitness stations per 1,000 population; this has been used in these calculations.

There are only 134 stations in 2 facilities within the 3 mile buffer zone of the former district boundary. The provision of fitness stations is based on individual business models but if the stations in the buffer zone are taken into account there is no need for more stations. Fitness gyms provide income to facilities and are an essential element of training schedules for a variety of sports so are often included at hub centres.

Although the national average for the provision of indoor bowls is 0.04 rinks per 1,000 population, Sport England’s Sports Facility Calculator indicates that provision should be at the level of 0.06 rinks per 1,000.

The only indoor bowls provision available in the former district is the 6 rink facility at Wycombe Sports Centre. This will reduce to 4 rinks in the new Wycombe Leisure Centre so this new figure has been used in the calculations.

In order to understand how this compares with other Local Authorities, surrounding authorities have also been analysed to clarify levels of provision elsewhere.

The comparison shows that of the 6 adjacent and nearby authorities, 3 provide no bowls provision and 3 provide more per capita than Wycombe. The provision of indoor bowls rinks may be required statistically but the provision of these large facilities are limited across the country and the current level provided with the former district is higher than a number of neighbouring districts.

There is no current established national demand and supply model available for squash. The findings of the Active People Survey highlight the propensity of different groups to participate in squash and this translates to the need for an average of approximately one court per 9,500 people.

The only squash facilities presently available without requiring membership in the former district are at Wycombe Leisure Centre (2 courts), Court Garden Leisure Complex, Marlow (1 court), Booker Squash Club (5 courts) and Wycombe Abbey School (4 courts).

There is a current demand for 18 squash courts in the former district in 2014. Supply and demand modelling for squash facilities therefore currently projects a shortfall in Wycombe equivalent to 8 courts in 2033.

Beaconsfield Squash Club (outside the 3km buffer, to the South West of the former district) provides a further 4 courts and has the potential to satisfy demand in the south of Wycombe in particular.