Houghton Regis Fights for its Sports Hall

On Saturday 29th, residents gathered outside the new Leisure Centre in Houghton Regis to raise awareness, and protest against Central Bedfordshire Council's (CBC) decision to close the old Sports hall without providing adequate and like-for-like alternative provision for team sports and community use. The old sports hall is due to be demolished in order to build a car park.

CBC argues that because there is a sports hall in the newly built Houstone School which groups and residents can access when the school is not in use through a Community Use Agreement, a further sports hall is not needed. CBC also advises that residents can use the Sports Hall at the neighbouring Dunstable Leisure Centre.

This has drawn criticism from residents, community groups and Town and CBC Councillors alike, for a number of reasons. The sports hall at Houstone School can only house four badminton courts where the previous hall could house six. The Houstone sports hall can only be accessed in the evenings and on weekends at times when exams are not being held, the Academy of Central Bedfordshire will not be able to access the space for PE lessons with vulnerable students, and the price for hall rental has gone up by 44%. Further to this, under the present Community Use Agreement, Houstone School Sports Hall can only be rented as one large space (individual courts cannot be rented), and there is no provision for “walk-ins”. With regards to using the facilities in Dunstable, many Houghton residents either won't have the funds or transport to get there, and sports groups have been told that there is very little capacity for them to use these facilities.

Without a like-for-like replacement, the community of Houghton Regis will face significant challenges in maintaining access to much-needed recreational facilities. The impact of losing this space on local youth, health, and community engagement cannot be overstated.

The protest on Saturday was peaceful, with attendees occupying space respectfully while chanting “sports hall for all!” In a speech, Dru Spinks, Chairman of the Luton and Houghton Regis Basketball Club argued that “this isn’t about the Leisure Centre, this is about the residents of Houghton Regis. CBC with their leisure strategy have not adequately provided for the community…They’ve neglected the rights of the residents.” Dru went on to demand “solutions”, “accountability”, and “affordable prices” from CBC. “We want CBC to give us an answer, of what is going to happen for the 15 to 17 weeks of the year when the hall is not accessible. The previous sports hall [had] six badminton courts, approximately 99 operative hours a week that the community could access it; The new sports hall is four badminton courts, about forty hours a week. There’s a huge leisure deficit there.”

The protest was well attended, and amongst residents and sports hall users were Labour Houghton Regis Town Councillors Abby Slough and Emma Billington, and CBC Councillors Chloe Alderman and Matt Brennan (Leader of the CBC Labour Group). A number of other Town and CBC Councillors were in attendance as well.

Your Labour Councillors first raised the issue of a lack of sports hall provision to the previous Executive back in 2022. Attempts to discuss it at scrutiny were shut down.

Since then, the team have been working hard to hold CBC to account. Cllr Chloe Alderman has submitted a Freedom of Information request toi Central Bedfordshire Council, seeking answers to the following key questions:

- The equalities impact assessment for the closure of the old leisure centre and sports hall.

- The equalities impact assessment for the new leisure centre that does not replace sports hall provision.

- Details on how this decision will specifically impact students with EHCPs (Education, Health and Care Plans)

- How the closure will affect physical and mental health in Houghton Regis, and what measures CBC plans to take to mitigate any negative effects.

- A breakdown of the data that was used to justify not replacing the sports hall, especially how CBC’s data on sports hall usage compares with the data provided by local sports clubs.

The response to these questions is expected by April 7th.

Cllr Alderman will also be raising the issue at the next Full CBC Council meeting (24th April) to ensure that this matter is not swept under the rug.

The Labour Group will continue to hold CBC to account and work alongside the Houghton Regis community until they commit to providing a suitable replacement sports hall—one that is accessible to all residents, particularly when they need it most.