Tooting MP urges Wandsworth Council to fund resurfacing for athletics track

Tooting's MP has urged her constituents to sign a petition that will encourage the council to resurface the Tooting Bec Athletics Track.

Labour MP, Dr Rosena Allin-Khan, posted a link to the online petition on her Twitter page, stating that the synthetic athletics track is currently at risk.

According to the petition, which is written on behalf of Herne Hill Harriers - the athletics club that is based at the Tooting Bec Athletics Track - the current track is currently 10 years beyond its expected life and will soon be unusable as a training facility.

However, Wandsworth Council has responded to the petition by saying an independent report has made it clear that the track is still suitable for running and training, and that any claims that state that the track is somehow at risk are "completely untrue".

The athletics track and gym, currently owned by Enable, has been a hotspot for running since the 1930s, with the synthetic running track being opened in 1985.

What Dr Allin-Khan has said

Dr Allin-Khan asked her followers to engage with the petition on Twitter.

She said: "Save our track!

"Tooting Bec Athletics Track's future is at risk and needs Wandsworth Council to fund repairs urgently.

"To lose such a valuable asset in our community would be a devastating blow to so many of our young people.

"Show your support. Sign the petition."

What Herne Hill Harriers has said

The statement on behalf of Herne Hill Harriers says: " We the undersigned petition the council to resurface the track at Tooting Athletics Stadium.

"The track surface is 35 years old which is already a decade beyond its expected useful life, has lost its competition licence and will become unusable as a training facility.

"The track is a resource which provides equal athletics opportunities in the heart of Tooting to all within the local ethnically diverse community.

"Herne Hill Harriers (est 1889) is your local athletics club operating from the track with a strong success record and which delivers a number of outreach programmes in addition to holiday camps (our most recent one attracted almost 300 children).

"Herne Hill Harriers has coached and supported athletes from beginners to Olympic athletes from a diverse range of backgrounds, and has been based at the track for more than 80 years."

What Wandsworth Council has said

Wandsworth Council has strongly denied the claims that the track needs, and even commissioned an independent report by Labosport - a sportsfield testing and certification company - to prove so.

The report found that even though the surface had hardened in certain areas, it remains suitable for "UK Athletics License Level 1 events".

Its report said: "Use of the facility for training can still continue to take place providing the following informatives are put in place: All known users and any coaches should be advised ……that the track surface has been recently tested and found to have hardened to a degree which has reduced its ability to absorb shock. Therefore, coaches and athletes should adapt the volume and type of training accordingly and consider the footwear that they wear (i.e. consider wearing trainers/racing flats as opposed to spikes)."

Councillor Steffi Sutters said: "We have seen some claims on social media in recent days that the track is crumbling, unusable and unsafe and that its future is somehow at risk. Let me say now that these claims are totally untrue.

"We fully support and encourage our residents, especially our young people, to engage in sports activities, which is why we provide top-quality sports facilities across Wandsworth including running tracks at both Battersea Park and Tooting Common.

"We want our local schools and clubs to use these facilities as often as possible. The athletics track at Tooting remains perfectly adequate for training purposes and for school sports events as we continue to monitor its condition we will continue to have discussions with local groups, schools and sports clubs about how it can best serve its users in the future."

If you would like to sign the petition, you can do so here.

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