§ Mr. SpringTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions he had with representatives of Sheffield City Council about the decision to remove the headquarters site of the UK Sports Institute to London. [95207]
§ Kate HoeyNo specific discussions have been held with representatives of Sheffield City Council, though representatives of Phoenix Sports Limited (the company formed by members of the Sheffield Consortium) have met with Ministers from time to time to discuss general developments related to the proposals for the UK Sports Institute Network Centre Sheffield. Officers of the United Kingdom Sports Council (UK Sport) and the English Sports Council (Sport England) attended the Board Meeting of Phoenix Sports Limited on 7 October 1999. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has since agreed to meet representatives of Sheffield at a suitable time soon.
§ Mr. SpringTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what criteria were used to determine that the headquarters of the UK Sports Institute should be in London; and(a) by whom and (b) when this decision was made. [95206]
§ Kate HoeyIt was originally envisaged that the UK Sports Institute headquarters would consist of around 200 staff providing a range of sports medicine and physiological services. In the light of discussions with the world of sport, and other developments both nationally and internationally, this view has been revised. With the760W new focus on a decentralisation of services to the network centres to better meet the requirements of athletes and coaches—and the need for a much smaller team at the centre—the UK Sports Council (UK Sport) considered it sensible to review how the central service functions could now best be delivered.
A full options analysis has been undertaken by PMP Consultancy on behalf of UK Sport. The criteria and relative weighting used to evaluate the qualitative aspects of the various options have been developed from the work undertaken by Dr. Roger Jackson, an internationally recognised expert in his field from the University of Calgary commissioned by UK Sport earlier this year to review and verify the role and functions of the UK Sports Institute headquarters/central services, and from the factors that will enable the Institute to do its job effectively. Seventeen different criteria were used covering (i) the impact on partnerships with key stakeholders; (ii) accessibility; (iii) resources; (iv) links with network centres; and (v) strategic role. The preferred option provided the greatest value for money in terms of qualitative benefit per £1 million of expenditure.
A summary of the options analysis was included in a paper about the UK Sports Institute prepared by my Department for consideration by the Sports Cabinet on 6 October. It was announced in a press statement on 7 October 1999 that the Sports Cabinet had agreed UK Sports' proposal that a headquarters is no longer required and what is now needed is co-ordination, support and administration from a body with a dedicated UK wide sports performance focus and responsibility. The preferred option meets these objects.