Committee approves Tooting Bec Athletics Track revamp

Works to revamp Tooting Bec Athletics Track have been backed by a council committee.

Proposals to invest £527,000 into replacing the running surface are now a step closer and will now be considered by the council's executive which will be asked to endorse the committee's decision.

Councillors on the environment and community services overview and scrutiny committee voted in favour of replacing the track early next year so that a brand-new running surface is ready in time for the start of next summer's athletics season.

Councillors were told that while the track has been carefully maintained and repaired over the years it is now reaching the end of its life expectancy.

In 2019/20 more than 83,000 people visited the venue with around half of those using the running track. Ten schools use the track on a regular basis, with a further 42 schools using it for school sports days.

Tooting MP Dr Rosena Allin-Khan recently led a campaign to get the track resurfaced.

The council's community services spokesman Cllr Steffi Sutters said: "I'm absolutely delighted to have secured a funding assurance for this important local sporting resource. This will be a significant investment in the Tooting track and demonstrates our commitment to safeguard our valuable community assets.

"It is a particularly welcome commitment given the funding issues created by the pandemic, which have badly affected the finances of some of the national sporting associations which would in normal times be in a position to consider contributing to the cost of such an upgrade.

"It is therefore testamant to the prudent financial planning and management of our town hall budgets that allows the council to fund this important upgrade in our sporting infrastructure."

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan thanked the community for getting behind her campaign when the proposals were announced.

She said: "We did it - our local campaign to save Tooting Bec Athletics Track is a success.

"The Council have finally listened to the community uproar at their lack of action and have agreed to fund the much-needed repairs.

"We first raised this issue earlier this year, but the Conservative Council continually rejected to fund repairs - instead insisting the track was fit for purpose.

"The track fell into such disrepair that our homegrown Olympians were told they'd have to stop using it.

"The Council should not have waited this long BUT we're glad the track is finally getting the resurface it deserves.

"A huge thank you to everyone who got behind the campaign to save the track."

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