Issue - meetings

To review the Re:Fit programme following deferment by the Cabinet.

i.  To approve the signing of Call-off Contract 2 with an exclusion clause for One Leisure Huntingdon Dry-side and One Leisure St Neots, both to realise savings at sites unaffected by lease issues and to give time to resolve outstanding lease issues; and

ii.  Remove One Leisure Ramsey from the scope of the programme owing to a potential redevelopment of the Ramsey Abbey School site incorporating the possible creation of a new leisure facility.

Having previously considered the matter at its meeting on 22 September 2016, Minute No.44 referred, and deferred progression of the Re:Fit Programme until the lease situation at the One Leisure sites had been resolved, the Cabinet were presented with a report by the Head of Operations (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book), the Re:Fit Programme having been reviewed to address Member concerns. 

The report presented a proposal to mitigate the risk associated with the unsigned leases at One Leisure St Neots and One Leisure Huntingdon (Dry-side) and to alleviate the uncertainty over the possible redevelopment of One Leisure Ramsey.

It was explained that following discussions, Bouygues Ltd had proposed that Call-Off Contract 2, the contract covering the delivery of the energy conservation measures, be amended to include an exclusion clause which would mean that should the leases not been agreed for St Neots or Huntingdon Dry-side by 1 March 2017, the sites would be removed from the project. 

The proposed exclusion clause allowed the Council to progress the Re:Fit project and to realise the savings which have been built into the Medium Term Financial Strategy for the One Leisure budget, whilst protecting the Council from investing in One Leisure sites with an uncertain future.

Owing to a possible redevelopment of the Ramsey Abbey School site, it was recommended that One Leisure Ramsey be removed from the scope of the Re:Fit programme.

The financial savings from the Re:Fit programme of £109,000 over the next 3 years had already been included into the Medium Term Financial Strategy, having been identified during the Zero Based Budget review for Operational Services.  With the exclusion of Ramsey from the programme the savings would be reduced to £84,000.

It was confirmed that there were no other Capital projects that would provide the same rate of return for savings as the Re:Fit programme.

In response to a question it was explained that the original payback period including One Leisure Ramsey was 9.45 years and with the removal of One Leisure Ramsey it reduced the payback period to 9.41 years.  The Cabinet were referred to Table 1 as contained in paragraph 3.3 of the submitted report which detailed the revised Capital cost, annual cost savings and return on investment for the Re:Fit Programme excluding One Leisure Ramsey.  Whereupon the Cabinet,

RESOLVED

  i.  to approve the signing of Call-off Contract 2 with an exclusion clause for One Leisure Huntingdon Dry-side and One Leisure St Neots, both to realise savings at sites unaffected by lease issues and to give time to resolve outstanding lease issues; and

  ii.  remove One Leisure Ramsey from the scope of the programme owing to a potential redevelopment of the Ramsey Abbey School site incorporating the possible creation of a new leisure facility.