Roy Clunie and Hugh McLean, two of the founding voluntary directors of Atlantis Leisure state: “We’ve run an extremely successful community enterprise for the last 17 years and want to use our experience as well as three other case studies - Shannon Swimming and Leisure Centre, Chipping and District Memorial Hall and Kilwinning Sports Club - to identify key element for success and help other organisations to deliver community solutions to community issues.
“We believe that the case studies demonstrate that communities bring inventiveness, enthusiasm, passion, and given the right support will outperform their public-sector counterparts both in service delivery and value for money.”
In 1992, with no indoor sports facilities for 90 miles, no funding available from the local authority, financial pressure on the local swimming pool to reduce hours and with no public play park, local people in Oban decided something had to be done. Today Atlantis Leisure provides highquality sports facilities including a six-court sportshall to regional specification, an ultra-modern gym, dance studio, five tennis courts, a swimming pool, floodlit all-weather pitch, sauna, café, etc., to upwards of 20,000 users every month and employs 40+ staff.
Atlantis’s report has identified six key elements of successful community-led service providers. These include: recognition in the community of the need for the facility/service; committed skilled people; on-going community support; charitable community companies operating on a businesslike basis; a framework of physical development creating human and social capital; and ensuring that people, finance and asset bases are kept in balance.
In partnership with Big Lottery, Carnegie UK Trust has supported a Rural Action Research Programme (RARP) since 2005. The Trust have worked with over 40 partners from around the UK and Ireland who represent the very best in rural community development practice to demonstrate costeffective, community-led solutions to the challenges facing rural areas.
Atlantis Leisure will be joined by fellow Scottish RARP partners, Pulteneytown People’s Project and the Plunkett Foundation. Pulteneytown set up a community “learning house” with childcare and computer access in Wick. Twelve months ago, they had 1.5 staff and £10,000 to run the project; it now employs 17 staff and has a turnover of over £500,000. The Plunkett Foundation examined how village shops can be developed into multi-service outlets. Both organisations will share their insights into the factors that assist the longterm sustainability and success of social enterprises in delivering rural services.
The final report from Atlantis Leisure and background to the action research of Pulteneytown and Plunkett can be viewed here.
For further information and interview requests, contact: Morag Pavich, Carnegie UK Trust tel: 01383 721 445, mobile: 07749 5050571 email: morag@carnegieuk.org