I was surprised to see that the Oxford Mail had received no reply from Oxford City Council regarding our successful plan to reduce the cost of leisure to the public purse (March 30).

I have received no request for comment.

Since 2008 the city council has reduced the public subsidy per user at our leisure centres from £2.14 ––one of the most expensive in the country – to 47p, while freezing the concessionary rates and keeping our full rates well below those charged by most private providers, and increasing usage among concessionary card holders even more than usage generally.

Our new contract with Fusion saves us a further £425,000 a year.

Usage is continuing to increase, especially at the new Leys Pools and Leisure Centre, while the replacement of Temple Cowley Pool saves substantial management and maintenance costs as well as reducing our energy bills (and reducing our net CO2 emissions by 600 tons a year).

We are on target to break even on leisure in two years by continuing with our current policy.

This will allow us to continue investing in improving our public leisure offer, while keeping prices affordable for all, including our concessionary offer which is one of the most generous in the country and which we have been able to expand to nearly half our new membership take-up.

Cllr Craig Simmons, therefore, is barking up the wrong tree.

The council’s plan to reduce the public cost of leisure is not a threat to local facilities or their affordability – rather, it is the only way to eliminate the threat that prices might have to go up to meet the costs.

Cllr MIKE ROWLEY
City Councillor for Barton, Sandhills and North-East Headington
Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Community Grants
Heath Close, Headington, Oxford