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The Courier
4 days ago
- Sport
- The Courier
No health impact assessments done for Perth Thimblerow leisure centre plans
No research has been done on how the reduction in leisure facilities at a new PH2O Thimblerow will impact health and wellbeing in the city. The controversial plans to build a new sports centre without a dedicated leisure pool has been met with near-universal backlash from residents and sports clubs alike. The revelation comes nine months after Perth and Kinross Council chief executive Thomas Glen was probed on the same issue, but still no assessments have been carried out. The council boss was questioned by Independent councillor Colin Stewart at the time. Mr Stewart asked: 'If we reduce the overall sport offering in Perth and Kinross, what assessment have you made of how that aligns with the corporate objective of improving people's health and wellbeing?' In response, Mr Glen said no such assessments had been carried out. 'We haven't done an assessment specifically round around any individual sport, round about the health impacts, we haven't done it for ice, we haven't done it for swimming, we haven't done it for any other sport,' said the chief executive. The latest revelation is the latest in a series of concerns about the lack of studies and consultations carried out by either the council or Live Active Leisure (LAL) in regards to the new leisure plans. The Courier revealed that LAL failed to carry out any consultation in their Equality and Fairness Impact Assessment (EIFA) regarding their plans to remove the gym from Bell's Sports Centre. Leisure bosses also appear to have ignored advice from their own independent consultants to hold a public consultation on the plans. World champion curlers claim their community was 'sidelined' by council officers in talks over the future of the Dewars Centre when they questioned the local authority's usage figures. In February, The Courier revealed that Perth and Kinross Council failed to consult with the board of Live Active Leisure on the plans for Thimblerow. Campaigners have also accused the local authority of conducting a 'misleading' consultation on plans to turn Bell's Sports Centre into an unheated arena with artificial pitches. The future of Perth's leisure facilities is set to go back before councillors again on June 18. The council want to build a watered-down vision of PH2O, incorporating Bell's Sports Centre, and turn the North Inch facility into an unheated arena with artificial pitches. Perth and Kinross Community Sports Network (PKCSN), who represent a dozen sports in the area, are furious at the proposal. Campaigners, including the curlers, swim clubs and former LAL board members, have heavily criticised the plans. The local authority said its Leisure Asset Review – submitted in January 2024, months before the chief executive's comments – looked at all available leisure facilities across Perth and Kinross. 'This includes school halls available for rent which, together with the six-court hall to be included in PH20, will provide adequate and additional space for indoor sport and leisure,' said a council spokesperson. 'We will be introducing a consolidated booking system to make it easier for groups to access these facilities. 'Councillors approved plans to create Thimblerow in September 2024 and will be presented with proposals for additional leisure water options, as they requested, later this month.'
Daily Record
29-04-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Dewars Gym proving more popular than when facilities were at Bell's Sports Centre
More people are using the gym and fitness studios at Dewars Centre than when they were at Bell's Sports Centre. Almost 100,000 visits have been made to the 100+ station gym and two fitness studios at Dewars, since they were moved there last September following the closure of Bell's. A total of 4358 different customers from the age of 11 to 90 have used the facilities in their new venue. The latest Live Active Leisure figures show there have been 98,725 visits to the gym and fitness studios at Dewars since September 2024. And they are proving popular with youngsters with 24 per cent of customers aged just 11-17 and 10 per cent over the age of 64. Live Active Leisure chief executive Paul Cromwell provided an update to Perth and Kinross Council's Scrutiny and Performance Committee on Wednesday, April 23. He said: "On average, we're looking at 16,000 usages per month. These are really positive for us, given we were starting at a renewed baseline because we had a gap in that Perth City fitness provision over quite a number of months. And they're on target to exceed the figures we achieved when the new fitness facilities opened at Bell's." And a number of future and current Olympic and Commonwealth athletes have been making use of the gym and fitness facilities. Mr Cromwell said: "We have emerging athletes programmes and we have over 40 athletes receiving strength and conditioning training to help them in their sports. Their sports include: hockey, curling, basketball, swimming, judo, football and athletics, to name but a few." He later added: "The fact we have got better numbers of what was a really good facility at Bell's gives us a clear reflection that people are enjoying the facilities." And Live Active is ready to adapt to meet trends and demands. The Live Active boss said: "It doesn't stand still. It's a competitive area and what we are doing is continually looking at our programme and developing it. "It's not just a fitness gym, we also have group fitness; we have different types of class within that group programme - and make sure they stay current and innovative and interesting to keep people coming back. "We have wellbeing classes and spinning. I have to say our spinning was quieter at Bell's but since it's moved to Dewars, it's actually increased in its popularity to the point where we're having to make additional provisions in terms of how we balance the programme against other things. Overall, so far, it's been a positive experience for us." The gym and fitness studios were relocated to Dewars Centre in September 2024 after Bell's Sports Centre suffered around £2 million of flood damage on October 8, 2023 when floodgates on the North Inch were left open. The 100+ station gym and fitness studios at Bell's had only just opened in July 2022 following a £750,000 revamp.
Daily Record
28-04-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Perth's new sports centre PH2O "at least five years away"
The head of Live Active Leisure understands Perth's new swimming pool and leisure centre will not be ready within the next five years. Chief executive Paul Cromwell told councillors this week - as far as he was aware - the long-awaited PH2O was "at least five years away". The revelation was made at a meeting of Perth and Kinross Council's Scrutiny and Performance Committee on Wednesday, April 23. The Live Active Leisure boss was providing an update to councillors, alongside the council's two other arm's length external organisations - Culture Perth and Kinross and Perth Theatre and Concert Hall. Cllr Willie Robertson asked Mr Cromwell if the gym facilities - which were moved from Bell's Sports Centre to Dewars Centre last year - were permanent or if they would be reusable at PH2O. Mr Cromwell said: "I suppose to a certain degree, there is the potential still of a blank canvas in that it could be converted into something else with suitable investment. "Obviously, we have made changing rooms which will be a permanent fixture going forward. "I'm not going to labour on PH2O but it is still at least five years away, to my knowledge. "So, in terms of the investment, it's been significant in the facilities and I think that's reflected in the quality of what we're providing and the success of it in the short time it's been open. "You've got a space there which could be converted quite easily. In terms of equipment, we can obviously pick that equipment up and move that to somewhere else so that investment is still there as well." Live Active Leisure opened the gym and fitness studios at Dewars Centre in September 2024. The decision to relocate the facilities from Bell's Sports Centre to Dewars Centre was taken after Bell's Sports Centre suffered around £2 million of flood damage on October 8, 2023 when floodgates on the North Inch were left open. The 100+ state-of-the-art gym at Bell's had only just opened 15 months prior to the flooding, after a £750,000 revamp. Plans for Perth's replacement swimming and leisure centre PH2O were first floated 10 years ago but the project has been repeatedly shelved by Perth and Kinross Council since then. In September 2024 councillors voted to approve a watered down £61 million PH2O proposal be built at Thimblerow. It would replace Perth Leisure Pool and the now closed Bell's Sports Centre. Perth Leisure Pool would be demolished and affordable housing built on its Glover Street site, upon completion of PH2O. Dewars Centre would remain in situ. Councillors voted to engage with the curling community on the possibility of curling bodies running Dewars Centre for a next-to-nothing rent. The proposal approved last September would see PH2O feature an eight-lane 25m pool, 12.5m x 8.5m teaching pool (both with movable floors), a toddler splash pad area, an indoor play area (potential Clip n' Climb or other family play activity), games hall, gym, studios and café. As opposed to a purpose-built leisure pool, it would have "family-friendly" swimming of programmed weekend/holiday inflatable sessions. However the "watered down" £61 million energy-efficient proposal has been strongly criticised. There has also been strong opposition to Perth's new sports centre being built on the site of a busy city centre car park. A Say No to Thimblerow petition - which currently has around 2500 signatures - has called for the new complex to include: a purpose-built leisure pool with flumes, kids' splash park, a 25m six/eight-lane training pool, ice rink, large commercial gym, fitness studios, sports halls and a large bowling hall/events hall. When setting the council's budget - in February 2025 - councillors voted to retain £90 million in the PH2O budget to allow financial flexibility to potentially splash out on additional facilities. On June 18, councillors will meet to consider Perth's future leisure options. Council officers will present a report to elected members outlining feedback from the Bell's Sports Centre consultation and proposals for its future, leisure water options for PH2O and an update on the feasibility of a community-led ice sports facility at Dewars Centre.
The Courier
25-04-2025
- Sport
- The Courier
Perth's Dewars gym on course to beat Bell's Sports Centre numbers
The new gym at Perth's Dewars Centre is shaping up to be even more popular than its predecessor at Bell's Sports Centre. Live Active Leisure (LAL) bosses say there have been almost 100,000 visits since its launch last September. Dewars, the centre for curling in Perth, became home to a 100-station gym, plus two fitness studios, after the previous facilities at Bell's were wrecked in the October 2023 floodgates fiasco. LAL chief executive Paul Cromwell briefed councillors on the state of play at Dewars this week. Latest figures show there have been 98,725 visits to the gym and fitness studios. A total of 4,358 different customers aged 11-90 have used them. One in four were aged 11-17, and one in 10 was over 64. And a number of future and current Olympic and Commonwealth athletes have been making use of the fitness facilities. Mr Cromwell says the figures are 'really positive'. 'On average, we're looking at 16,000 usages per month,' he said. 'They're on target to exceed the figures we achieved when the new fitness facilities opened at Bell's.' Mr Cromwell updated Perth and Kinross Council's scrutiny and performance committee on Wednesday. He said Dewars was delivering for a wide range of people, as well as elite sports men and women. 'We have over 40 athletes receiving strength and conditioning training to help them in their sports,' he said. 'Their sports include hockey, curling, basketball, swimming, judo, football and athletics, to name but a few.' And he added: 'The fact we have got better numbers than what was a really good facility at Bell's gives us a clear reflection that people are enjoying the facilities.' Bell's Sports Centre suffered around £2 million of flood damage on October 8, 2023 after the floodgates on the North Inch were left open. Its gym and fitness studios had only just opened the previous summer following a £750,000 revamp. The indoor bowling rink at Dewars had to be removed to make way for the gym gear. Both the Dewars and Bell's centres are facing uncertain futures after councillors approved plans for a new PH2O leisure centre on the site of Thimblerow car park in the city centre. Campaigners want the new venue to be built at Glover Street, the current home of the Dewars Centre and Perth Leisure Pool. Sports groups are also opposing the council's plan to turn Bell's into an unheated event space with indoor pitches. Councillors will re-examine the plans for PH2O, Dewars and Bell's in June. • The Courier has campaigned for an ambitious new leisure complex in Perth that caters for all sports, including leisure swimming and curling.
