Celebrating
10 years in Highley
Annual Report and Performance Review For the year April 2014 - March 2015
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The Severn Centre is a registered charity and not-for-profit Leisure Trust.
2014 / 2015
In conversation with... “It is the community benefits that can’t be so easily recorded on spreadsheets that we want to prioritise and which our success as a business can serve to support...”
Chris Reeves, The Severn Centre General Manager A parent recently told me that they saved their child’s life as a result of a first aid course we held at the Centre. It is one of scores of stories I hear and while none of them tell the whole story of why we’re here, each one moves and motivates the team, and reminds us what kind of centre we want to be. Why this year we’re fighting for the survival of our pool and why we’re cutting our own grass! It was exciting to celebrate our 10th anniversary last September. We hosted a special event which brought everyone who works here (from the vet to the Sure Start team) or simply visits here for a weekly club (be it WI or Tae Kwon Do) to celebrate what we’ve achieved. It has been a good and very different year for the Severn Centre. We’ve risen to the financial challenges we face and found new ways to diversify via projects and programmes that raise revenue and support the work we want to do. I mention grass cutting because our Grounds Maintenance initiative is an example of that. Our team have taken over from the contractor who used to look after our grounds, and created a business enterprise (we secured a contract to look after the local Church grounds, and others are in the pipeline) that generates a much needed income stream for the Centre. At the same time, leisure membership during the year hit an all time high (bringing in an additional £10,000). What’s more participation in activities across the year was up on 2013/2014 by over 2000, with – as our Chair of Trustees talks about in this report – real benefits of cross usage coming through. Our library is wonderful, and tots up over 2000 visits during the busiest months. We’ve been linking up with local schools to encourage usage from the younger members of our community, but this remains a vital meeting place and service for users of all ages. It is the benefits that can’t be easily recorded on spreadsheets that we want to prioritise. Severn Centre users are split fairly evenly between young, middle aged and older people and we’ve seen increased cross usage. Visitors to a Friends of the Severn Centre meeting enjoying a group exercise class, while gym users discover a club they can join, to families who use the library experience the joy of a dip in our outdoor pool. We want to help each and all of these people stay in good physical and mental health, and tackle issues like social isolation, workplace stress, adolescent mental health and more. Our sport and fitness offering is all about encouraging more local people to be more active more often. The launch of partnerships with public health is helping us address issues like smoking and obesity. As part of a team delivering Shropshire Public Health Help2Change programme the Centre introduced a Help2Get Slim service in this financial year, following on from the successful introduction of Help2Quit which welcomed dozens of smokers wanting to make a change. We know that two thirds of people in Shropshire are overweight, with a quarter defined as obese. This can lead to all sorts of health issues like diabetes and heart disease. This is something centres like ours can tackle head on. The outdoor swimming pool became the biggest challenge for the Centre during this year. We have seen a 15% reduction in our public funding, but that has made us look harder and made us look differently at how we can generate more income, and how we can save our pool. The launch of our £120k fundraising campaign got off to a great start and brought the community together to preserve something that has been at the heart of Highley since the 70s when locals raised the money to create a safe place for children to learn to swim, and to enjoy water.
Severn Stats...
20,572 1,175 Library visits
7,795 8,560 Swims
Walking club sessions
Group exercise class workouts
The Severn Centre top ten
Highlights from our year in Highley, shaping our direction for the year ahead
1
Right at the top has to be our 10 year anniversary celebration, a wonderful community event which offered VIP tours of the Centre, introduced visitors to our ever expanding team and range of clubs, and gave them a chance to try out everything from the pool to team sports, the gym to a fitness session. We were delighted that Bridgnorth high jumper Beth Patridge (pictured right, in red at front) joined the celebrations, a perfect wind down after the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Here’s to the next ten years!
2
The Highley Sprint Triathlon in May 2014 welcomed nearly 150 competitors plus 40 youngsters who signed up for the junior event.
3
In June we raised hundreds of pounds for Breast Cancer research. Customers who signed up (for just £10) enjoyed a day of workouts including Aqua Zumba, Metafit, Vibe Nitro, Vibe Cycle, Vibe Power, Zumba and Body Conditioning.
4
Our summer fete gave us another opportunity to introduce new people to all the benefits of the Severn Centre. Cue bouncy castle, face painting, local school choir, gladiator podiums and the brilliant Iron Men Severn Guilders Morris dancers to mark the day.
5
7
Kids, kids and more kids. Holiday clubs, supported by Highley Parish Council, continued to offer families in Highley a brilliant affordable way to keep children aged 4 - 12 years old active during the breaks from school. And, of course, during the summer we continued to teach children to swim - every youngster completing that first challenging width on their own reminding us why we have a pool, and why we want to preserve it.
We turned on the Christmas lights and created a superb seasonal celebration with book, gift and jewellery stalls, a bouncy castle, trampoline, face-painting stand and of course - our traditional Christmas grotto. The event raised over £1,500 to support the work of the Centre.
6
More over 50s walked this way and onto the team of our walking football team. The club meets at the Severn Centre to enjoy this new take on football and new way to get and keep fit. They are already competing against other regional teams.
8
Ladies Day welcomed dozens of women from the area to enjoy a glass of bubbly, a slice of cake and the chance to explore and enjoy pamper treatments on offer from local businesses.
9
Wedding days are here! The Severn Centre offers venue hire and wedding breakfasts along with evening parties where guests can dance the night away!
PS…
10
We were delighted to welcome People2People onto our ever growing list of partners. This organisation now provides social work and occupational therapy services from the Centre. It aims to reach older people and adults who have disabilities in a bid to promote independent living and to prevent isolation and loneliness.
And as we nudged into the new financial year we started work on a new GP referral scheme called Exercise on Prescription. It allows people dealing with depression, tackling obesity or suffering from a range of medical ailments to benefit from an exercise and lifestyle support programme to help them manage their condition.
In conversation with... “The Severn Centre wants to stay relevant, to change with the times, and to respond to community need...”
Val Hill, Chair of Trustees for The Severn Centre During this year the Severn Centre felt solid, innovative, forward looking. We sought to both improve on what we were already doing, and to find new ways to serve the community of Highley. Things which have been pipe dreams became realistic targets. It was - still is - incredibly exciting to watch and be part of. We also sought out new ways to support the Centre financially - for example through the Grounds Maintenance initiative Chris talked about earlier - and we’re now looking at other businesses that we can work with, businesses based here in the community that - crucially - do not only contribute to the Centre’s future but enhance our offering to local people at the same time. Usage is up across the board, and that is thanks to a cross over among users. We have worked incredibly hard and for a long time to promote multi-use - so that those who come in for community events and meetings see and take advantage of the sport and fitness facilities, and those who come in for sport and fitness learn about and get involved in community events. The Miners Cafe continues to be a very powerful vehicle here, thanks to the sheer hard work of the team who run it. It has also been a friendly place for otherwise isolated members of our community to meet up for a chat and a coffee! That crossover we’re now seeing is essential for this enterprise. We are punching above our weight, developing and introducing new ideas when other organisations like ours have had to cut back. If we come up against barriers to what we want to do, we look at how we can move forward in spite of them, or we look at viable alternatives. That’s our ethos, and it’s palpable in the way the Trustees and the Severn Centre team work. If there is something the community wants we get behind it. The community voted overwhelmingly in favour of a campaign to save the swimming pool, and what’s marvellous is not only the fact that this facility will remain, but the way the staff have committed to that, and the way the campaign is bringing people in the community together. People who see what we have achieved become ambassadors for the Centre, and hold us up as a model to other organisations in the county. That continues to give those organisations the confidence to ask us to deliver services on their behalf. We were delighted to get more involved with Shropshire Council’s Health and Wellbeing Projects. We are now able to support local people to stop smoking and to lose or manage their weight. This would be a very boring job if we were working just to stay the same, to stay afloat, to tick boxes. The Severn Centre wants to stay relevant, to change with the times, and to respond to community need. We have to be flexible enough to do that moving forward. That’s the way we’re going to stay ahead of the game.
In conversation with... “Fitness is no longer about looks, but about life....”
Jon Rogers, Health and Fitness Manager at The Severn Centre One of the real privileges of this role is seeing the impact the Severn Centre has on people’s lives. I see people coming in to the Centre (for fitness classes and personal training, to swim or get fit) and finding friends and support. And I see them taking steps to become more physically active, or to give up smoking, or to improve their health. It makes my job very rewarding. Fitness has changed. It no longer belongs to the stereotypical gym enthusiast. The Severn Centre’s health and fitness offer (gym workouts, group exercise classes, personal training sessions, badminton, table tennis, outdoor swimming)
is for all backgrounds and ages, shapes and sizes, abilities and disabilities. It’s no longer about looks but about life. Reports suggest that four out of five adults in this county still don’t take enough exercise. We want to see it become part of everyone’s routine; we want to help people make regular exercise like regular meals part of their every day. This year we saw a lot of people wanting to go back to basics, and classes like MetaFit were a real hit. They weren’t looking for anything fancy or complicated. They wanted to work hard for 20 minutes, and feel good for the next 24 hours as a result.
“People don’t always realise what they have got until it’s gone...” There has been a pool in Highley since the 1970s when this mining community was motivated to use part of their wages to build it, largely in response to the number of children who had drowned swimming in the River Severn. The pool created a place where they could learn and love to swim in a safe place on a sunny day, creating a leisure facility on the doorstep of a town which had few links to other pools and sports centres around the county. It is, ironically, the pool – now, of course, part of the Severn Centre – that’s in danger. The Centre needs £120,000 to refurbish, maintain and preserve it and the thousands who use the Centre have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a rescue plan and a fundraising effort. In this year efforts got underway, and soon there was thousands in the pot. “But what we’d really like to see is people using the pool while it’s here,” says Chris Reeves, General Manager. “People don’t always realise what they have until it’s gone. Campaigns to save other lidos around the UK have proved that. We have a fabulous facility here which provides families with a cracking day out and people with a great way to work out and wind down in summer months. Nobody in this area wants this pool to go the way of scores of others, closed because of lack of funding.”
Rescuing Britain’s lido 5 things you should know
1
Lido is the Italian word for beach, and now the name given to outdoor pools, areas of beaches dedicated to swimming, or the swimming deck of a cruise ship.
2
The lido’s golden age was the 1930s when over 150 outdoor pools were built by local councils. There are, though, some grade listed ‘lidos’ dating back to the 1800s, the oldest believed to be in Bath.
3 Our outdoor pool pre and post recent maintenance work.
Many lidos closed during the 50s and 60s as foreign travel became cheaper and more popular among Brits, but soon after there were a whole string of campaigns to save the lidos by local people who loved them. There has even been a national conference on the issue.
4
In the last ten years long running campaigns have managed to reopen lidos in London, Oxford and Bristol.
5
There are now around 60 lidos in the UK, but only three in Shropshire and only one in this area: Severn Centre’s pool at Highley.
Continued from previous page
Why Social Enterprise matters more than ever... The Severn Centre is a community focused, ‘not-for-profit’ organisation. That means the money we make from fitness memberships and bookings is ploughed back into the Centre to support the work we do. This year we’ve continued our commitment to opening 70 hours each week and to keep to a pricing structure that allows local people to enjoy the leisure facilities for less than £1 a day and to offer concessionary discounts for local residents who have disabilities, are aged under 17 or over 60, on means-tested benefits, or in fulltime education.
Launching the campaign to save the pool was so important. It was built to help children learn to swim, but it’s become an essential part of the exercise programme here and is a brilliant low impact workout for people who are less mobile. An eye to the future… We have a lot of exciting plans in the pipeline for next year, including a refurbishment of the gym. But the pool will remain one of the highest priorities until the finance and the facility are secure”. The perfect partner We are privileged to have Highley Parish Council as a friend of the Severn Centre. Their practical support for the work we do in this community and their additional funding for children’s activities during school holidays benefits families across the area.
This would not have been possible without the commitment of everyone who works for or with us - the police, Sure Start Children’s Centre, our librarians, group leaders and volunteers and the management support offered by Halo Leisure, one the UK’s leading Leisure Trusts, who input into the operational running of the Centre. The Severn Centre has once again demonstrated just what what a multiagency partnership can achieve and the difference it makes to the health and wellbeing of the whole community.
C is for Clubs...L is for Library...S is for Sure Start...V is for Vets...W is for Weddings 17 community groups (from table tennis to reading, gardening to dancing) operate from the Centre. We are proud to be home of the local vet, community police station, Highley Minors Childcare and Sure Start Children’s Services Centre. We also provide a base for the community’s Meals on Wheels service which, when delivering the food, also drop of a library book at the same time to those on the scheme. And now we’re a venue for weddings and functions too... Check out a whole list of our services on the back page.
Want a piece of the action? There are so many ways you can help your local community by getting involved with the Severn Centre. Through volunteering at an activity/event, by joining our board of Trustees or getting behind our fundraising efforts. If you feel you can contribute - in any way - to the growing success of the Centre, please speak to reception.
Financial Accounts 2014/2015 Financial Performance in the year ended 31 March 2015 Income
Expenses 2014/15
£
2014/15
£
Grants & Donations
2.80%
8,588
Staff costs
38.64%
140,487
Management Services fees
30.29%
92,856
Gas, electric & water
13.78%
50,102
Membership subscriptions
15.36%
47,082
Repairs & grounds maintenance
1.76%
6,403
Swimming pool
5.39%
16,536
Swimming pool
6.54%
23,763
All other centre activity
19.74%
60,515
All other property costs
4.19%
15,229
Food & beverages
4.77%
14,612
Food & beverages
2.47%
8,979
Lease income
11.18%
34,270
Administration costs
5.91%
21,506
Recovered service charges
6.67%
20,448
Halo management fee
5.50%
20,000
Grounds maintenance contracts
3.31%
10,162
Grounds maintenance contracts
2.07%
7,514
All other income
0.49%
1,500
Charity administration costs
0.93%
3,391
Depreciation charges
18.21%
66,211
Total expenditure
100.0%
£363,585
Total income
100.00%
£306,569
2014/15 Severn Centre Total Income £306,569
Grants & Donations 2.80% Management Services fees 30.29% Membership subscriptions 15.36% Swimming pool 5.39% All other centre activity 19.74% Food & beverages 4.77% Lease income 11.18% Recovered service charges 6.67% Grounds maintenance contracts 3.31% All other income 0.49%
The Severn Centre is a registered charity and not-for-profit Leisure Trust.
2014/15 Severn Centre Total Expenses £363,585 £363,585
Staff costs 38.64% Gas, electric & water 13.78% Repairs & grounds maintenance 1.76% Swimming pool 6.54% All other property costs 4.19% Food & beverages 2.47% Administration costs 5.91% Halo managment fee 5.50% Grounds maintenance contracts 2.07% Charity administration costs 0.93% Depreciation charges 18.21%
A-Z of Services
A
is for Activity - and there are scores to get involved in
All weather pitch - for team games Badminton - one of several racket sports Bar and cafe Beauty treatments Books - hundreds of them at our library Bowls club Bus pass renewal
C
is for Clubs (we have a growing number), and for cafe and coffee and for chatting with friends
Childcare via Highley Minors Child Care and the area’s Sure Start Centre Concessionary discounts Conference and meeting rooms for hire Community - it’s what we’re all about Cricket club Dance workshops and lessons Exercise studios
F
is for Friends
Fitness classes Function room for hire Gardening club GP exercise referral scheme Gym sessions Holiday activities for children in school holidays
I
is for new Interests
Indoor sports hall Internet access
J
is for joy
K
is for Kids, and the brilliant activities they enjoy
Library and mobile library services Meals on Wheels
N
is for News and our website at www.severncentre.co.uk
Outdoor pool Police station services Q is for quitting, and the support we offer to smokers who want to kick the habit Running (on our treadmills at the gym) Severn Strollers club Slimming club Social events Storytime in the library Swimming lessons Table tennis Tae Kwon Do Teen gym sessions for 13 - 15 year olds Tennis Training Triathlon - Highley’s annual sports event
U
is for under 5s - and all the activities they can enjoy
Vet’s practice Volunteering opportunities WI meetings Walking clubs Walking football clubs Weight management - and the support we can offer Wiggles and Giggles Writing clubs X is for Xtra...and so much more Yoga Youth Activities
ZZ
Z
is for the healthy sleep. One of the many benefits of exercise
Want a piece of the action? Pop into the centre, visit www.severncentre.co.uk or call 01746 860000 The Severn Centre is a registered charity and not-for-profit Leisure Trust.