Review of Community Buildings

 

Fareham Borough Council is undertaking a review of all Council owned community buildings and identified this process a high priority. A key part of the review is to develop a broad vision for producing high quality community facilities across the Borough of Fareham.

The broad aim is to provide well designed, modern facilities that meet the needs of the community, within each of the defined Community Action Teams (CATs) areas. The five CATs areas being:

 

• The Western Wards

• Portchester

• Fareham Town

• Titchfield

• Crofton

 

It is intended to develop the vision along the following lines:

 

• In each CATs area a detailed needs assessment will be undertaken to identify the type of provision that will be needed to meet the needs of the local community.

• A master plan will be prepared for each area to match community provision to the identified needs. In preparing this plan local community associations and user groups will be consulted to ensure their requirements are identified.

• The Council will work with community associations and user groups to identify possible sources of funding towards the provision of new and improved facilities.

• The Council will liaise with those groups that successfully manage community buildings that are not owned by the Council to identify good practice to feed into the master plan for each area.

• The Council will plan for future maintenance liabilities and develop plans for the maintenance of existing community buildings until a long term decision on their future is reached.

 

It is envisaged that the master plans will cover a ten year period to provide improved community facilities across the whole Borough.

 

Fareham Borough Council have, in principle, committed £500,000 as “pump priming” for the process and it is hoped that through careful planning, much of the proposed vision can be achieved through the re use of existing resources and external funding opportunities. In addition, where appropriate money received from developer’s contributions through the planning process will be used to help fund the vision.

 

Based on the condition of existing buildings, the master plans will be phased as follows:

 

Community Centres:

 

Phase 1            Portchester with a project focused on building a new community centre in the area.

Phase 2            Crofton based on a refurbished Crofton Community Centre.

Phase 3            Titchfield focused on a refurbished and modernised Titchfield Community Centre.

Phase 4            Fareham Town with the ambition of providing a new community building on an appropriate site.

Phase 5            Western wards – a project aiming to improving facilities at Victory Hall, Priory Park Community Hall, Whiteley Community Centre and Burridge Village Hall in conjunction with the proposed community building at Coldeast.

 

Sports Pavilions:

 

Phase 1            Focused on new team changing facility at Wicor Recreation Ground, Portchester.

Phase 2            A project to refurbish the existing facilities at Stubbington Recreation Ground and incorporating these into the Crofton Community Centre.

Phase 3            Refurbishment of the changing rooms at Mill Lane, Titchfield.

Phase 4            Focused on the provision of new facilities at the Bath Lane recreation ground.

 

This approach builds on success that the Council has achieved on community building projects over the last 18 months, for example:

 

• New changing rooms and football pitches have been provided at the Seafield Park recreation ground in Hill Head supported by £320,000 from the Football Foundation.

• The changing rooms at Locks Heath recreation ground were refurbished at a cost of £50,000 funded from developer’s contributions.

• The community facilities at Burridge recreation ground have undergone a £350,000 refurbishment using money received from the sale of land at Yew Tree Drive, Whiteley for the provision of a doctor’s surgery.

• Funding of £285,000 has been approved to refurbish the “old wing” of the Crofton Community Centre to secure the long term future of this part of the centre.

• Developer’s contributions are to be used to fund a programme of improvements to the sports pavilions at the recreation grounds at Warsash, Allotment Road and Sarisbury Green.

 

More detailed information about the development of the vision for community facilities in the Borough of Fareham can be found in the Report to the Executive for Decision 28th July 2008 (187 Kb) on the review of community buildings.  Alternatively you can contact the Council on 01329 236100 or if you have any questions send an e mail to customerservices@fareham.gov.uk.

If you would like to comment on the proposed vision or provide an input to the process please email customerservices@fareham.gov.uk.