What do you think of our Sports Facilities?

[Kintyre Forum News]

PMR Leisure are visiting Campbeltown next week as part of their commission to undertake the Facilities and Pitches Strategy which will assess all sports and leisure facilities in the area and set Argyll & Bute Council’s investment Strategy for Sport for the next 5 - 10 years.

The Strategy will not only provide a solid foundation for Council decision making, but also an up to date, comprehensive picture of facilities in the area.

This is an important opportunity for sports groups, clubs and the general public to raise their views on the facilities we have in Soiuth Kintyre.

The consultation process begins on Monday 1st of March with an invited audience of ‘Sports Clubs’ in the Campbeltown cluster area followed with a public meeting on Tuesday 2nd March at 7:30pm in the Town Hall. PMR Leisure would urge all those with an interest in sport to get actively involved in the consultation process by attending the public meeting.

Should anyone not be able to attend either of the these meetings PMR Leisure are happy to be contacted by email at info@pmrleisure.co.uk

Please remember while there is an invited Sports Clubs meeting on Monday there is a public meeting arranges for Tuesday 2nd March 2010 - poster below

[TYM]

I would urge anyone who can to get along to this meeting and make their views known. The last thing we want is for PMR to go away from here thinking that we are happy with our lot or just plain apathetic.

There seems to be a number of sports in this area where interest seems to come and go - rugby, shinty, and cricket immediately spring to mind. Is there still a badminton club running on a Monday night or has this suffered this year through lack of volunteers? Perhaps if we had better facilities then interest would improve and be more sustained.

I would love to play squash but there is no facility. I wonder how many others share the same opinion?

It seems to be that apart from bowls and maybe water sports, we are not all well off in the way of facilities.

Finally, there is football as the dominant sport. We must take this opportunity to press home the the necessity of an All Weather Pitch capable of staging competitive matches. I hope to see you there.

[Davie P]

I would urge anyone who can to get along to this meeting and make their views known. The last thing we want is for PMR to go away from here thinking that we are happy with our lot or just plain apathetic.

There seems to be a number of sports in this area where interest seems to come and go - rugby, shinty, and cricket immediately spring to mind. Is there still a badminton club running on a Monday night or has this suffered this year through lack of volunteers? Perhaps if we had better facilities then interest would improve and be more sustained.

I would love to play squash but there is no facility. I wonder how many others share the same opinion?

It seems to be that apart from bowls and maybe water sports, we are not all well off in the way of facilities.

Finally, there is football as the dominant sport. We must take this opportunity to press home the the necessity of an All Weather Pitch capable of staging competitive matches. I hope to see you there.

TYM, Well said. This honestly is a real opportunity for the community to make their feelings known.

Even a couple of lines will do, anything!

Aside from the AWP there are lots of issues - pitches, drainage, lack of sports hall, tennis courts need new surfaces etc etc but these have to be raised. This consultation is being carried out by an external company who will report the facts to the Council whether they like them or not. It is a real chance to highlight concerns, how our facilities can be improved for the next 10 years.

[DJD]

Have to go along with TYM on the Squash courts,brilliant game and l woud be convinced that facility would be used alot,if it was built along side and connected to the Aqualibrium.

Also if they ever get to build this AWP then may be the could throw in a two 400m track around the out side or something of that nature for us pot hole and car dodgers runners

[bud]

its a joke that the toon doesnt have an all weather pitch

though im not part of a club im sure me and my friends would get together and book it. its a good option for something else to do and do it 52 weeks a year.

more should also be made of cycling and of road biking. that really is a sport worth trying!

[smiles]

Like the idea of a running track. Facilities for athletics in general are poor both inside and outside.

[Sport]

Just a reminder to ALL sports clubs tonight about the meeting in the Aqualirium and to the public about the meeting tomorrow night in the Town Hall.

PMR Leisure are visiting Campbeltown next week as part of their commission to undertake the Facilities and Pitches Strategy which will assess all sports and leisure facilities in the area and set Argyll & Bute Council’s investment Strategy for Sport for the next 5 - 10 years.

The Strategy will not only provide a solid foundation for Council decision making, but also an up to date, comprehensive picture of facilities in the area.

This is an important opportunity for sports groups, clubs and the general public to raise their views on the facilities we have in Soiuth Kintyre.

The consultation process begins on Monday 1st of March with an invited audience of ‘Sports Clubs’ in the Campbeltown cluster area followed with a public meeting on Tuesday 2nd March at 7:30pm in the Town Hall. PMR Leisure would urge all those with an interest in sport to get actively involved in the consultation process by attending the public meeting.

Should anyone not be able to attend either of the these meetings PMR Leisure are happy to be contacted by email at info@pmrleisure.co.uk

Please remember while there is an invited Sports Clubs meeting on Monday there is a public meeting arranges for Tuesday 2nd March 2010 - poster below

[Mack]

I find it difficult to believe that every other community seem to have attained the expected level of facilities, all the while Campbeltown and Kintyre have been completely over-looked.

However, I also think we now have the opportunity to right this wrong by getting behind this campaign. We now have the mechanism in place, not only to express our dis-satisfaction, but also a great opportunity to achieve our goal.

Lets look forward and make sure we bring our facilities into line with every other sizable community. The future of community sports in this area depends on making our dreams into realities, and, to get our voice heard so this type of exclusion never happens again.

[Nomad]

< insert standard toon comment about no ferry/new all weather pitch/ new tesco/ old potholes/ here.

[Ship called Dignity]

Any thoughts from tonight's meeting?

[bigchang]

had to work Davie, was there a good turnout?

[Darren]

Absolutely shocking turnout actually, i counted sixteen, not including kids, staff, 1 councillor(?) and the 3 who were actually hosting the evening..

2000 people signed the petition claiming there was a need for an all weather pitch and thats as many as can be bothered to turn up.

such a poor turnout is going to look good in the report about the level of support for an AWP, we have(?) a great chance to finally get one but will no doubt get what we deserve now - nothing..

[Davie P]

Absolutely shocking turnout actually, i counted sixteen, not including kids, staff, 1 councillor(?) and the 3 who were actually hosting the evening..

2000 people signed the petition claiming there was a need for an all weather pitch and thats as many as can be bothered to turn up.

such a poor turnout is going to look good in the report about the level of support for an AWP, we have(?) a great chance to finally get one but will no doubt get what we deserve now - nothing..

Darren, thanks for the feedback it does raise a few very good points. (as you know I couldn't make tonight)

From speaking to PMR I certainly got the impression the attendance of the public meeting is not a factor with regards the AWP Campaign.

As a campaign we've had a substantial amout of input to highlight the need for an AWP and over the next couple of weeks will have a huge (and if not more important) opportunity to highlight the need etc. There was an excellent turn out of Sports Club last night at the invited meeting and afterwards for the separate football one. I also took the invited opportunity to meet up with PMR today so discuss the AWP Campaign and what needs to be done in terms of taking this to the next stage. (more on that later!)

PMR have also met with the schools, development officers, council officials, community councillors between yesterday and today (merely to highlight there has been engagement elsewhere). ON the note of the grammar school PMR could not honestly believe the facilities we have there and the state of the school.... (another thread...)

From a Sports Council perspective we were keen however, not to "hog the limelight" in terms of the AWP last night (and hence the separate football/AWP meeting) and again with tonight - as we were keen for this to be about ALL sports facilities and pitches and not just the AWP. So from the AWP perspective we didn't push it.

As a Sports Council however, we did push the meeting - on here, in the Courier, posters, e-mails etc and plugged the point that is an important opportunity. It would be interesting to know how many people attended due to reading this here or elsehwere etc (from the short time I was there before the meeting I know most people I saw were forum members...)

You are however, quite right to say the turnout is shocking and the one word that is used over and over again in Campbeltown is APATHY. Perhaps the turnout says more about what people think about our facilities and the chances of them being delivered? Perhaps like so many others we could all simply say "What is the point, because we get nothing here"?? (not nothing but catch the drift..) The public only have to look at the situation with regards the All Weather Pitch for Campbeltown as an example - a facility that was highlighted in the Councils playing field strategy in both 1998 and again in 2004 as a priority ONE for Argyll & Bute Council area and here we are in 2010 with no AWP facility while this has been delivered to every other community listed as Priority 1 (and lower) in Argyll.....

It would be interesting to hear why people didn't attend. In fact it would be interesting hear people's thoughts in general!!

Anyway, I'll be off line until Thursday so look forward to catching up on it then. Got to play football in Glasgow tomorrow night.