Sally Wainman Says [in comment]:
The Scottish Parliament is currently conducting a Pathways into Sport inquiry and anyone may submit evidence for the committee to consider.
The deadline for submissions is November 21st 2008
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/committees/hs/inquiries/pathwaysintosport/call.htm
See also: Govanhill Baths Community Trust and Govanhill Baths Variant Article
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Save Broomhill Pool! – www.savebroomhillpool.org
November 15, 2008 at 12:19 pm
I would like to pre-empt some of the findings of the “Pathways into Sport” enquiry and say that one of the biggest barriers for accessing sport is the way grassroots facilities are funded (or rather NOT funded).
Community groups campaigning for change can find themselves trapped in an absurd “Catch 22″ situation whereby a local council will promise funding IF other sources of funding can be obtained. The Big Lottery Fund or the Heritage Lottery Fund then tend to reply that they can’t offer funding unless the local council is fully on board!
This is what has happened down in Ipswich, Suffolk in England and it looks as if a very similar situation is playing itself out over the campaign to try and obtain a swimming pool on the Black Isle peninsula, which comes under the auspices of the Highland Council.
The campaign to try and save the Ipswich lido, Broomhill Pool, moved into its seventh year this autumn. A major setback then occurred when the bid for Heritage Lottery Funding was rejected on the grounds that the HLF needed to see greater “commitment” from Ipswich Borough Council. A spokesman from the HLF said that the offer of £1million from IBC had been promised but not secured.
The Council’s reply is that they have been consistent with their view on the Broomhill project since 2005.
Interestingly both the Highland Council and Ipswich BC have allocated substantial sums for their own preferred projects, so this is not about a lack of money per se.