Dunmow

Public swimming takes a nosedive   Letter from Dunmow Broadcast & Recorder  10.5.07  http://www.dunmow-broadcast.co.uk/searchcambs/search/story.aspx?brand=SAFOnline&category=NewsDunmow&itemid=WEED10%20May%202007%2014:58:29:357&tBrand=SAFOnline&tCategory=search 

REGARDING Great Dunmow Leisure Centre and its swimming times I must express my most serious concern at the exceptionally poor amount of swimming times that are now being given to members of the public, which I set out for your information.

A new swimming timetable was printed for the public listing the new times, which are now from April 16 and they have most certainly included far more times for the public.

However, on contacting them just to check before arriving I was then told the following: Wednesday, time 10am to 12 noon, has been cancelled; and Thursday, time 10am to 11am has been cancelled.

Looking at the remainder of the timetable it will be seen that there will be, during the remained of the week, only one hour available for public swimming until 6pm.

On behalf of the very many people who use this quality facility, I find this is totally unacceptable as this was built as a dual purpose building for both Helena Romanes School and for the general public to have a part-share.

Therefore, members of the public should not just be turned away at the last minute.

Uttlesford District Council should now carry out an immediate investigation. This is unacceptable and suitable steps should be taken to ensure that this type of treatment for their residents does not happen again.

Name and address withheld

From This is Essex 10.9.04   http://snipurl.com/9efg        Thanks to "Scotch" for sending this item to LCW.

Uttlesford: Centres told to get into shape

Councillors have ordered leisure centres in Dunmow and Stansted to shape up or pay up. Members of Uttlesford District Council's community and leisure committee have issued a warning to Leisure Connection, the company responsible for running the Great Dunmow Leisure Centre and the Mountfitchet Romeera Leisure Centre. 

Feedback from a council survey highlighted problems including poor customer awareness, and hygiene, lack of staff knowledge, expensive membership, a shortage of courses and the need for repairs. 

Failure to meet targets laid out by the council by January could result in financial penalties. However, since May Leisure Connection has employed contract cleaners and fixed the broken pool steps at Dunmow. A communication officer has been appointed with a schedule of training schemes to improve staff knowledge and increase course availability. 

To improve customer awareness, posters will be put up in centres two weeks before each forum meeting. David Morson, chairman of the committee, said: "We want to work in partnership with Leisure Connection because it's the best way forward." 

From Dunmow Observer 13.5.04     Apathetic sports staff end dream

A DUNMOW councillor has hit out at apathetic sports centre staff for failing to support his Uttlesford Superstars event.

Town and district member Frank Silver had put together the six-event challenge for the area’s young athletes to compete for the prestigious Superstar title and had even lined up a national sports personality to present the prizes.

But rising insurance costs meant he had to ask the operators of Dunmow Sports and Leisure Centre to consider reducing their charges and their failure to respond has forced him to pull the plug on the idea.

“Letters and phone calls were made asking for a decision to be made as a cut-off date would be April 23/24 if this were to proceed. I very much regret that to date, nearly five weeks later, there has still not been the courtesy of a response, which I find unforgivable,” he said this week.

He started working on the project in January, devising a programme for the August 8 event, and had the backing of Uttlesford District Council’s leisure committee, of which he is a member, which thought it was “a great idea” and left him to take the project forward.

But then things started to go wrong, he said. “Public liability insurance was required and I contacted the district council, but they had already given me a grant of £350 to run the event.”

When the leisure centre refused to help out, Mr Silver then had to get quotes to pay for the insurance himself. “Rather than let the event fail, I spent many hours contacting various companies and eventually found one prepared to arrange cover, but not for the swimming event and the charge would now be £160.

“It was easy to change the event, but as funding was now not sufficient to cover the costs, I decided to ask the leisure centre if it would reduce its charges by approximately £100 so that we could proceed. It would, after all, get all the prestige of holding the event.”

But leisure centre business manager Tracy Hardcastle failed to respond. “The leisure centre, which originally approved the plans, has done nothing at all to help progress this idea forward. It’s total apathy,” he said.

A spokeswoman for centre operator Leisure Connection said staff had been “extremely accommodating both with their time and resources” in assisting Mr Silver with the event's organisation.

They claimed he had been unable to secure insurance cover and had failed to formally confirm his booking. “The centre staff are adamant that they have always responded to Mr Silver's communication since initial contact in December 2003,” she said.