Introduction
Firstly, I want to commend Paul Kettrick and Craig Isdale for the huge amount of work that has gone into the preparation of this report. Both the collection of detailed data, and the public consultation meetings have been a major undertaking and I thank them for all they have done to bring this together.
Officers have undertaken this Herculean task as they were required to do, but the entire process has been back to front, the wrong way round, topsy turvy and totally mixed up. Any business analysis process will outline the steps, in order as:
- Identify the problem.
- Collect the data.
- Analyse the data.
- Research and develop proposals.
- Consult on proposals.
- Decide on the best course of action.
Sometimes different words will be used but the process is fairly standard.
This is not the process that has been followed for the Strategic Property Review. The process Falkirk has followed has been:
- Should have been identify the problem – instead it was to create the problem through lack of funding and years of mismanagement. This report admits that there is a “significant backlog in maintenance in property assets” of £200 million.
(Paragraph 4.2 page 44 Strategic Property Review Update Item 5 Falkirk Council Meeting 29 March 2023)
NEXT - The next stage in the SPR process was: - Jump to step 6 – Miss out the collection and analysis of data. Miss out the research and development of proposals. Miss out the consultation. Go straight to decide on the course of action – and that decision was to close 133 properties or facilities plus 4 school swimming pools. This decision to rip out the heart of our communities was taken in December 2022.
NEXT – Oops – we need to consult the community so: - OK back to step 2 & 5 – From December we started to consult the communities on whether they can take over these badly maintained and badly managed properties to avoid closures. Having put out the threat of closure, scare the community into offering to take over the management and the risks rather than lose the facility.
NEXT – Oops - now we can collect and analyse the data - OK now we can have Steps 2, 3 and 4 – collecting and analysing the data and looking at the options – despite having incomplete data - with the proposal of closure if no Community Asset Transfer or alternative delivery model is viable.
We are where we are.
We cannot put the genie back in the bottle.
We cannot start all over again and do it right.
We can pause, reflect, and get the process back on track.
We must do that if we are going to make the right decisions and provide the support and leadership our communities deserve.
What makes a community work?
Buildings do not make communities. People make communities. But in order for people to come together as a community, in the absence of dry sunny days all year round, people need places to meet and socialise. At the heart of communities we need to have schools, shops, cafes, pubs, churches. We also need parks (for the few good weather days we get) we need sports faciltis, and we need community centres.
What this process has done so far
I understand that the Council is in a serious financial position. I also understand that the reason the Council has an eyewatering budget gap is that the Scottish Government has reduced funding to local government year on year since 2007. I understand that the Scottish Government froze Council Tax or restricted how much the Council could raise in Council Tax from 2007 until this year.
The Scottish Government tries to blame Westminster. The Conversative UK Government has certainly been responsible for trashing the economy. It has certainly been substantially responsible for the Cost-of-Living Crisis. However, for devolved services, the UK Government has given the Scottish Government £126 per person of Barnet-based funding for every £100 per person of equivalent UK Government spending in England and Wales.
On the plus side this process has encouraged communities to join to protect their community centres and sports faciltis. We are pleased that so many groups are interested in taking over buildings through Community Asset Transfer, or other Alternative Management Partnerships. Some communities have said they have been trying to do this for years, but the Council has not been cooperative. The Council needs to cooperate and to put adequate support in place – and it needs to be put in place in a sustained way. So far £6 million has been pledged to bring buildings up to standards. This £6 million is only available to some communities, at the expense of closures in other communities. And this £6 million is a fraction of the £200 million this report idetiies as required. So this process is pitting community against community. This cannot be allowed to continue.
So how do we move forward now?
A Way Forward
Although the process so far has been back to front, we are now where we are. There has been a consultation process – albeit a flawed process. There has been the colletion of data on the usage and costs of facilities – not complete yet but at least we have some information about the costs of running the buildings, the usage of the buildings and the equalities impact assessment of closure on some of the buildings.
We now have an opportunity to take this forward. We have an opportunity to respect the voices of our communities. We have an opportunity to ensure that the community and sports facilities at the heart of our communities are managed in a sustainable way and managed for the benefit of the communities.
It is obvious from the consultation responses (and this report acknowledges it) that a one size fits all approach will not work. Already it has been accepted that a different approach in relation to much loved Town Halls and buildings of historical importance is needed. Already it is becoming apparent that it is unrealistic for larger sports facilities which serve a wider area than the local community have to be approached differently, involving partnerships of larger organisations. Facilities like the Grangemouth Stadium, Bo’ness Recreation Centre, and Polmont Ski Slope bring people in from other areas. They bring people in to the Falkirk Council area, bringing much needed spending to the local economy. The fact that these facilities exist encourages people to want to live in this area, and to want to visit this area.
Grasping this Opportunity
We need to take this opportunity to get this process back on track. We need to turn this juggernaut around and start to use this opportunity to bring our communities together, to bring our buildings and facilities into the 21st century in terms of energy efficiency, management arrangements and community involvement.
Falkirk has a plan. It is called the Falkirk Plan. We need to take action to make the aims of the Falkirk Plan a reality.
Our area will be a fairer and more equal place to live
We need to ensure we treat our communities equally
We will grow our local economy to secure successful business, investment and employment
We need to make Falkirk an attractive destination.
Our children will develop into resilient, confident and successful adults
Our children need a good education, but they also need sports and other physical activity, they need parks, they need youth clubs, they need after school clubs, where they can socialise and play.
Our population will be healthier
People need sports facilities, gyms, and importantly they need the food pantries and food banks that run from our Community Facilities.
People live full, independent and positive lives within supportive communities
If we turn this process around by voting for this amendment, we are voting for a process that will support our communities in coming together and supporting one another.
Our area will be a safer place to live
A strong, supportive community is a safer community.
A vote for this amendment is not a vote for keeping every unwanted building open. Buildings that are empty and surplus to requirements should either be put to some use or closed. Buildings that are not used by the community, that the communities do not value, can be disposed of. However, we need to make sure that we make these decisions based on all the informtion, based on all the data, and after we have looked at all the ways we can make facilities more successful, more financially viable and managed in a sustainable way.
A vote for this amendment is a vote in support of our communities. A vote for this amendment says “we care about our communities”. It says we want our communities to thrive, to be able to come together in healthy physical, social and cultural activities. It says we want our communities to throw off the fearful isolation Covid created and embrace a happier, healthier and more supportive day to day life.