24 January 2023
Your request
Please could you direct me to the initial consultation on the MUGA on Central Hill Estate that led to the decision of high fences around a section of the area?
Was this suggested by a resident or the council?
When was this put to the residents?
Why is an open-plan design not being offered as choice to all the residents on Central Hill?
Our response
The request came from the young residents at the Central Hill estate via the Rathbone Youth Hub. The Rathbone Youth Hub support the young community at the Central Hill Estate in collaboration with Fulham Football Club Foundation to assist with physical and mental well-being. Three days a week the Rathbone Youth Hub delivers a diverse range of fun sports and physical activities with a further offer during the school holiday period. The Rathbone Youth Hub members that live on the estate expressed the need for the MUGA to be redesigned and refurbished to improve usage. The Rathbone Youth Hub hosted two consultations with the young people to ascertain their needs and desires and presented the information to the council. The feedback included a request to improve the surface area, improved game markings, reshape to make rectangular, fencing, replace goal nets and basketball hoops and improved lighting. The council met with the Rathbone Youth Hub and the contractors to map out the proposed new equipment factoring in the requests made by the young residents.
The council adopted four methods of consultation with the residents to maximise feedback. This included an in-person drop-in session with the young residents in collaboration with the Rathbone Youth Hub and a further all-resident session in the Resource Centre, leaflets to all properties, an online consultation on the council’s website for one month and two days of door-knocking for residents unable to make the sessions. The consultation period closed on 6 January 2023 and we are analysing the feedback received. The Council can confirm that out of 91 people who engaged with the council, only two people did not support the project.
As noted above, the request is a direct response from the young residents that use the space daily for health and play benefit. The children’s play area is right next to the MUGA. The MUGA will be used for ball games (football/basketball), such games are enhanced by high fenced perimeters to a) stop the ball from having to be frequently retrieved and b) to prevent by-standers from being hit by stray balls. It was part of the design offered by the play contractor in their designs and wasn’t included in the survey as it is an essential component of the MUGA.