Agenda item

AGREED that:

a)      the performance of Active 4 Today to Period 8 be noted;

b)      the 2023/24 Business Plan be considered, with the specific amendments as put forward by the Executive Shareholder Committee being incorporated; and

c)      the performance framework for Active 4 Today be revised and enhanced as outlined in the report. 

The Committee considered the report presented jointly by the Director – Housing, Health & Wellbeing and the Managing Director – Active4Today which sought to present to Members the performance of Active4Today for the period to November 2022.  A draft of the Business Plan for 2023/2024 was also attached as an appendix to the report for consideration.

An overview of performance including usage and financial performance was reported together with an update against the performance indicators and performance against the Company’s sports development function.  It was noted that the overall performance was positive, in particular the recovery from the pandemic.  However, there had been a number of significant financial impacts, including the impact of the pay award, increased utilities costs and increased costs for supplies and services with the overall impact being reported as a deficit increase of £45,980.00.  Details of the proposed future reporting arrangements were detailed in paragraph 2.4.  The draft Business Plan was appended to the report, noting that it was to be developed into a reporting framework in order that performance against the offer could be monitored.  In addition, the draft Business Plan would be reviewed to ensure it aligned to the Council’s key objectives and that work would be undertaken with council Officers to maximise support to residents through the cost-of-living crisis.

In response to what measures were in place to retain both new and existing members, the Managing Director for Active4Today advised that customers often left after failing to meet their own unrealistic targets and that this was the same nationally.  It was noted that customer feedback on social media was good with positive customer satisfaction levels.  In comparison to other similar companies, Active4Today was doing well.

In noting that the development of the Business Plan was ongoing, Members suggested that the following points be taken into consideration:

·      That a 3-year medium term forecast for the management fee be developed;

·      Ensure that any digitising of the service reflected the ethos of the Council, with regards to the customer experience including: accessibility, customer interaction, customer feedback processes;

·      That the impact of the cost of living pressures within the district and how A4T may be able to support residents in accessing facilities whilst maintaining a sustainable offer be considered;

·      Identify the value of volunteers accessing the volunteering pathway through VISPA and how this aligned to the Community Plan;

·      Identify the costs associated with the sports development offer and percentage attributed to the management fee received from the Council and provide a summary sheet of the business plan, e.g. the targets and actions, so these can be easily located and seen in a single table.

·      Provide the reasoning for the increase in reserves.

In response to the above, the Managing Director advised that he had created a 3 year forecast which would require a revision to the Medium Term Financial Plan.  In relation to the digitisation of the service provision, he advised that an app was to be launched in the new year which would enable customer satisfaction data to be captured, details of which would be provided to the next meeting of the Committee. 

AGREED      that:

a)            the performance of Active 4 Today to Period 8 be noted;

b)            the 2023/24 Business Plan be considered, with the specific amendments as put forward by the Executive Shareholder Committee being incorporated; and

c)             the performance framework for Active 4 Today be revised and enhanced as outlined in the report.