Tag: Campaign

Response from Andrew Hardie

Just as an update to our request for candidates in the local elections to send responses, we did in fact receive a handwritten letter from Andrew Hardie, the Conservative Candidate, a day after the election.  As with some of the other responses, it was supportive of the facility, he has memories of swimming at the Baths, and he would like to ‘preserve, and indeed, widen its use after discussion with the Council, local GPs and schools.’  Unfortunately he fails to answer several of the questions we put to him.

As an aside – if candidates do want their views known, it would be preferable to receive replies in a format that we could easily pop online, and in plenty of time before the election.  Just sayin’.

Response from Cllr Ishtiaq

Just as an update to the previous post where we published letters from two of the five candidates standing in today’s election… I spoke with Cllr. Ishtiaq (the retiring Cllr, standing for re-election today) and Cllr Shokat Ali, (both Respect Party) this morning.  They inform me that a response was sent out to our letter within two days of them receiving it.  Their position is against Trust ownership and they both want swimming to continue on the site.

If and when we receive the response we’ll post it up.

Candidates respond to our letter

A few weeks ago we sent out a letter to all candidates for the Sparkbrook Ward in the forthcoming local elections, to see what their views are on the future of Moseley Road Baths.  We informed them that responses would be posted online.  We have, despite requesting a response by 30th April received just two out of a possible five replies – from the Labour Party and Green Party candidates.

Our letter:

As you are a prospective Councillor for the Sparkbrook Ward, the Friends of Moseley Road Baths and our supporters are anxious to hear your position regarding one of the ward’s most important public buildings, Moseley Road Baths.  You will be aware that it stands in the middle of Balsall Heath and has served the community for over a century.  However, major investment and renovation is needed to maintain this Grade II* listed building, and to ensure that it continues to operate as a swimming facility.

We would like to know your answers to the following questions:

  • Are you committed to the future of swimming at Moseley Road Baths?
  • Are you committed to reopening the Gala Pool as a swimming pool?
  • Are you committed to maintaining the building and facilities under public ownership?
  • Are you committed to maintaining the building and facilities under public management?
  • Do you have any ideas as to how the building could be developed to meet the needs of the local community?

Response from Tony Kennedy – Labour Party Candidate

Thank you for your letter regarding Moseley Road Baths, I am happy to set out my thoughts, though please forgive me if my response does not follow the exact questions.

Firstly, I am totally committed to the complete renewal of all the existing and historic facilities of the baths. We have the last (and only) opportunity to retain, preserve and enhance this gem of a building and facility of local and national importance. I understand and value the utility of the Baths for local people, the many other users, and the passionate attachment to such a unique and beautiful building.

For many years I swam there at lunchtime and regularly took my (now grown) daughters for a ‘real’ swim; (amongst many other experiences there, I enjoyed a splendid underwater performance by the Birmingham Electronic Arts and Sound (BEAST) group). I understand and value the unique qualities of the Baths as a local facility, the last example of a public bathing facility, a historic and critically, a working building in a unique and important part of Birmingham.

Secondly, I am an experienced politician with good insights into political and financial processes and priorities; it is absolutely clear that the Baths are just one of many currently competing priorities in Birmingham and under the present CON/LIBDEM Coalition control will receive minimal ‘political maintenance’ support with the imminent prospect of closure when budget cuts dig deeper.

Thirdly, the only prospect of saving, preserving and enhancing the Baths is as a flagship facility as a flagship of a major ‘Moseley Road’ regeneration programme, creating a vibrant local centre with major external funding and linking to the City Centre Regeneration Zone and the A342 ‘string of pearls’ from Digbeth to Moseley road and Moseley/Kings Heath – this would also mean creating a major attraction of the local centre and the other presently dilapidated listed and significant buildings: Library, School of Arts, Dance Centre, Arts & Crafts building (The Make-It centre), Tram-shed etc.

I have led and won bids for major regeneration resources (Sparkbrook/Sparkhill SRB & URBAN £60 million, Aston Pride £54 million) and chaired the Sparkbrook & Sparkhill Regeneration Board and the East Birmingham & North Solihull Regeneration Board.

In short, we need a serious, strategic framework to justify major investment in the Baths and to demonstrate their role in the strategic development of the area and the city. We need a strategy which is ambitious, realistic, achievable, shared and demonstrably of value to a vibrant city.

Lastly, we need to change the nature of the debate and develop a wider vision for a regenerated locality with historic buildings, sustainable communities and a local centre integrated with nearby buildings and services: health, police, retail shops, library, community, faith and leisure facilities.

I propose creating a local centre steering group with the Friends of Moseley Road Baths at its heart. Every opportunity should be pursued (lottery etc.) for the Baths; however, major development will only be possible by demonstrating the catalytic effect of the development for the wider area.

In 2003/4 I chaired the ‘Local Centres’ regeneration strategy group under the then Labour-controlled council, Moseley Road was the top priority for a series of renewed local centres across the city- this was binned by the CONDEM coalition council when they took control, as was every other Labour Party policy.

Labour will win control of the Council in 2012, whilst the sitting Leader will become Interim Mayor in November this year with executive powers until the Mayoral election in 2013, so HE will have authority to make and set the budget (it would require 2/3rds of the full city council to overturn this. The CONDEMs have so miss-managed Birmingham City Council’s budget that currently 66% of the total Birmingham Council Tax revenue goes to service the debt accumulated on their pet projects (Harborne Baths, Sutton Coldfield Town Hall, ‘Central’ Library, etc.)

It does seem to me probable that the national coalition will open the purse-strings in a couple of years as and when the national economy picks up (they will sell the Government shares in the banks, for example, at a profit.) There are also opportunities to bid for lottery, European and other funds.

Given these circumstances, the Mayor needs to be convinced of the case for supporting a thriving local centre at Moseley Road and I am happy to help build and make this case and promote an ambitious scheme.

So, this is the context for the Baths. We need a ‘reality-check’ to take account of financial and political realities, build a compelling case for the future, and campaign hard to win the resources to achieve the shared vision. This campaign will not be won overnight and will take considerable communal effort. I pledge to work to these ends.

As for your questions, I support whatever the consensus of the community decides.

Best wishes,

Tony Kennedy

Labour Party Candidate

Sparkbrook Ward Election, 2011

Response from Charles Alldrick – Green Party Candidate (typed from handwritten letter)

Thank you for your letter on 20th Aprill[sic] 2011.  My answers are the following.

  • I am committed to the fact all local children should be abel[sic] to swimming free of charge at Mosely[sic] Road Bath, which should remain open.
  • The Gala Pool should reopen to benefit the public.
  • Mosley[sic] Road Bath should owned and maintained by the city, however Friends of Mosely[sic] Road Bath should have controll[sic] over the runing[sic] for the interest of the public.
  • Undrer[sic] Public Health Mosely[sic] Road Bath the only public bath-wash left in Birmingham, hence Friends of Mosley[sic] Road Bath should be more recognised by the local authority and residence[sic].

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have further questions.

Yours sincerely,

Charles Alldrick

Work commences at Baths

Re-opening of Moseley Road Baths planned for late May

Following an extended period of closure caused by structural problems with a wall in Pool 2, repair work was due to commence at Moseley Road Baths on March 21st, with a hoped for re-opening date of no later than May 23rd. The Baths failed to re-open after the Christmas and New Year break ahead of work commencing to repair the lintel support to the rear door of Pool 2. However, many users felt the closure to be premature, occurring as it did some weeks before the finance needed to carry out the repairs was in place.

With Sparkhill Pool closed since June 2008, swimmers have been forced to use alternative facilities, such as the leisure pools at Cocks Moors Woods and Fox Hollies, or the narrower and shorter pool at Tiverton Road in Selly Oak. To many Moseley Road Baths regulars, such facilities have proved inappropriate to their specific swimming needs. The closure has been particularly problematic for local schools, with many unable to afford the transport costs involved in travelling to pools further afield and with little or no spare capacity on the timetable for schools at these venues anyway.

The door that needs a new lintel today serves as a fire exit, having been added during World War II when Moseley Road Baths was used as a first aid centre.

Councillor Martin Mullaney, Cabinet Member for Culture, Sport and Leisure, has kept residents and the Friends of Moseley Road Baths informed during the last few months of progress in arranging the repairs and getting the funds released by the Council Finance Department. However, a start date for the repairs was only confirmed in early March.

According to Councillor Mullaney: “The objective of the works is to replace the lintel on the fire exit of Pool 2, which will allow the pool to re-open to the public. The work will take between 6-9 weeks, depending on the complexity of the issues discovered when the current rotten lintel is removed. So at worst, the pool will re-open to public around 23rd May.”

The initial work involves constructing a steel frame to support the gable wall after the present lintel is removed. Speaking of the building’s long- term future, Councillor Mullaney stated that meetings have recently taken place involving senior council officers and English Heritage officials to investigate ways in which restoration of other areas of the baths building could be undertaken as part of a Heritage Lottery Fund bid.

Demonstrate this Saturday!

Birmingham City Council has been spearheading efforts by local authorities to slash local budgets and open services up to the private sector.  A huge chunk of this will affect frontline services.

At the Friends of Moseley Road Baths we’re concerned that public swimming facilities across Birmingham will be transferred into the private sector and effectively run by Trusts.  We believe that this jeopardises the long-term future of the building as a swimming facility and may affect accessibility.

As such we will be joining with local residents, council workers, community groups and trade unions on Saturday to demonstrate against the cuts.  Everyone will be gathering from noon in St Philips Square.  We’ll be there with a banner, so please do come and join us!

There is more information on the Birmingham Against the Cuts website, along with a whole host of reasons why you should get involved.

Stop the Cuts demo

Work due to begin on Pool 2

Cllr Mullaney, Cabinet Member for Sports, Leisure and Culture has today put an update on his blog re. the work to Pool 2. The pool closed at the beginning of the year and it has taken until now to identify the extent of the work to be done, prepare a business case and secure funds. However, the money has now been secured and work is due to begin soon. The full text of Cllr Mullaney’s update is below:

Update on Moseley Road baths – 22nd February 2011

At the moment Moseley Road baths is temporarily closed. Background to this closure can be read at http://martinmullaney.blogspot.com/2011/01/update-on-moseley-road-baths-14-th.html

As of yesterday, the funds to repair the fire exit in pool 2, which in turn will allow the pool to re-open, have been released by the Council Finance department.

I will be attending a contractors meeting next week, along with Council officers, to agree start and finish dates for the repair work.

It is anticipated that the repair work will require, at most, five weeks. So allowing at least a week for the contractor to move onto site, we are mostly likely looking at an 18th April re-opening date. However, this will be confirmed next week.

The repair work is quite complex, since a structural frame will need to be constructed above the fire exit lintel so as to allow the steel lintels to the replaced. The structural frame which will be required take the weight of roof that the lintel is presenting supporting

In the meantime, the water in pool 2 is being maintained on a slow circulation. This is so as to stop the tile grout inside the pool drying out and possibly cracking, plus it maintains the sand filters.

Additional to all this, several meetings have taken place between senior Council officers to look at ways in which the restoration works for the rest of the baths could be done in phases as part of a Heritage Lottery bid.

Moseley Shoals statement

We’ve been in touch with many people inquiring when Moseley Road Baths will reopen, really highlighting to us the need for it to open as soon as possible. Moseley Shoals have been using the Pool for group swim sessions for years, and have put their case to the Council as part of the ‘Business Case’ for the work on the pool to be commenced. I’ve copied in their statement here.

STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF BUSINESS CASE – MOSELEY ROAD POOL

Moseley Shoals Swim Club (based at Moseley Road Pool)

We are a community swimming club, dedicated to lesbian, gay and bisexual swimmers. We formed at Moseley Road Pool in 2000, and we have hired the pool as a group for ten years. We are the largest local LGB sporting and social group in the Midlands, and one of only a few similar national groups. We have steadily built our group to achieve national and international recognition. We have developed coaching sessions and water polo at Moseley Road.

We have been able to build our club at Moseley Road Pool, through support from the local LGBT Community Trust and the pool staff and managers. We have developed sufficiently to hire the pool three times a week and organise a considerable social element to our club. We would be unlikely to be able to book these sessions at any other local pool at suitable times. In 2005 we were forced to move to Sparkhill Pool, and this disruption lost us members, which took us over two years to recover. We are already facing competition from private leisure sites and the need to charge full price to our members when public swimming is free.

We are self funding and contribute circa £1,000 every two months to the city leisure department. We have been acknowledged by the Birmingham LGBT Trust as a major provider of sporting and exercise opportunities to a marginalised group, facing discrimination and difficulty in accessing mainstream provision. We were given support by the Sports Council to further promote our club.

Our next marketing campaign is currently on hold. We have been unable to compete in a European swim gala this Spring, due to uncertainty over coaching sessions, which we have needed to cancel. Our members are unable to swim in a proper fashion, underlined by a disastrous trip to Cocks Moors Woods Leisure Centre, where despite being promised proper swimming provision, we were restricted to half a “fun” pool. Birmingham Leisure Department is losing our considerable hire fees, and losing visitors to the city. A quarter of our members visit from neighbouring districts, and spend money afterwards in the local economy on food, drinks and shopping.

We would be grateful for repairs to be completed swiftly and to a timetable which allows us to limit damage to our club, and to remain major supporters of community swimming and equal opportunities for city and neighbouring residents.

Mark Hillier
For Moseley Shoals Swim Club

13 January 2011

Update on closure from Councillor Mullaney

Many of you will be aware that Moseley Road Baths is currently closed as work was due to begin on the lintel area around the Fire Exit on Pool 2 this month.

Councillor Mullaney last week posted up a report on the latest developments which I would recommend people read to have a grasp of what is happening. The upshot is that further inspection is needed of the structure supporting the wall and the windows and that this will determine the time and cost involved.  Funding is apparently available, but has not yet been signed off by the Council.

Friends of Moseley Baths, whilst appreciating the scale, scope and cost of the work, are anxious to see the pool reopen as quickly as possible.  The Hall Green Constituency currently has no swimming provision at all, something which is disastrous for those who rely on regular swims to maintain mobility and good health, and especially concerning for young people locally who are being denied the chance to learn basic water safety. We want to see the work completed to the standard required of a Grade II* listed building.

It’s crucial that the public remain involved in monitoring what is happening.  We are asking people during the closure to contact local Councillors to ask them to commit to the maintenance and reopening of the building.

Please take the time and contact your local Councillors or attend local advice surgeries to ask for updates on the work, and to ensure that they will fully support the maintenance work and reopening of the pool.  Make sure that you use the comments page and/or our e-mail address to let us know if you get any response!  You may wish to ask them:

What do they know about the closure?

Are they actively pressing to ensure that the work is moving forward?

Will they approve the budget for the repairs to be done?

Are they committed to the future of swimming at Moseley Road Baths?

Are they prepared to make a public statement about the lack of all swimming provision in the Hall Green Constituency?

Are they committed to keeping Moseley Road Baths within local authority control?

Will they campaign on the issue in upcoming local elections?

We would also encourage people to contact the local press and attend local Ward Committee and Constituency meetings to keep the issue in the public eye.

Cabinet Member for Leisure, Sport and Culture – Cllr. Martin Mullaney –  Martin.Mullaney@birmingham.gov.uk

Ward Councillors

Cllr. Mohammed Ishtiaq – Mohammed.Ishtiaq@birmingham.gov.uk

Cllr. Shokat Ali – Shokat.Ali@birmingham.gov.uk

Cllr. Salma Yaqoob – Salma.Yaqoob@birmingham.gov.uk

Local Press

Birmingham Post – Upload letters to the Editor here

Birmingham Mail – letters@birminghammail.net or call freephone number 0800 138 2555 or 0870 830 6985 between 8am and 5.30pm specifying that you are submitting a letter to the Birmingham Mail.


An open letter to Cllr. Mullaney

Several members of Friends of Moseley Road Baths recently met with Cllr. Mullaney (Cabinet member responsible for leisure facilities within Birmingham), and Steve Hollingsworth, (Assistant Director for Sport and Events) to discuss the need for urgent repairs and maintenance to the building.  Here is the letter we have sent to Cllr. Mullaney, copying in local councillors, the local MP, key officers within the constituency and people within BCC with a remit to look at leisure facilities.  We’ll be keeping all our supporters updated on our progress. Continue reading An open letter to Cllr. Mullaney

Investigating Leisure Trusts

It appears that many councillors and council officers within Birmingham City Council are keen to transfer leisure services within Birmingham, including all swimming pools into a ‘Leisure Trust’.  They are expected to vote on this in the coming months.

A Leisure Trust is essentially an independent body which will take the responsibility for providing the services that the council currently has a statutory duty to provide.  Many councils currently use this model (including neighbouring Sandwell).  Many reasons are cited for this, not least the ability to raise more funds that are currently unavailable to local authorities.

Andrew Brightwell has been doing some sterling investigative journalism over the past few months to find out why councils are so keen to pass responsibility over to Leisure Trusts, and whether the assumptions made about them are correct.  I really recommend having a read through his blog, Where Can We Swim? which has loads of well researched facts and figures, many specific to Birmingham.  His most recent post, Investigating Leisure Trusts: The real work starts now!! summarises just some of his research and calls on all of us to scrutinise the process that our local councillors and council officers are working on behind the scenes.

Friends of Moseley Road Baths have major misgivings about transferring services to a Trust.  These include the need to protect staff pay and conditions (one of the most valuable assets in any public service), maintain and improve standards, sensitively protect the fabric of the building and to commit to accessibility for all.

We also have concerns about the nature of any body taking over services.  Will they, for instance, invest any profits back into the service, can they be accountable and responsive to service users (whose taxes still pay for the service) and will we be able to put them under the same level of scrutiny as any other public body?  At the present time such trusts are exempt from the Freedom of Information Act – an anomaly that MP Tom Brake is trying to address.

So, what are your thoughts?  Is Councillor Mullaney presenting us with a quick fix which is too good to be true, or is the ‘Big Society’ vision of devolving power to trusts and community groups a sustainable, successful model for swimming pools that we should aspire to?  What questions should Friends of Moseley Road Baths be asking of the Council.  Is it maybe the case that this model could work for other pools, but not for a Grade II* listed building?  Oh, and please, please, take time to have a look at Andy’s site and leave your comments and questions!