(a)

the Plymouth Plan was being published in two parts; Members currently had the opportunity to comment on part 1 of the plan as part of the consultation process.  The plan itself set out the shared strategic direction for the future of the city and would replace approximately 130 plans and strategies, including the Local Transport Plan, and the Housing Plan;

(b)

policy 12 (Delivering the best outcomes for children, young people and vulnerable adults) was a wide-ranging policy, a key aspect of which related to child poverty.  It was necessary for the results of the consultation to be known before the policy could be developed further;

(c)

policy 22 (Delivering learning and talent development as a major civic approach in support of the skills developments of citizens) highlighted the importance of education for the citizens of Plymouth;

(d)

it was vital that young people were given independent careers advice, and were given the opportunity to obtain the skills that employers needed;

(e)

Plymouth Adult and Community Learning Service (PACLS), along with their partners, YMCA and the Shekinah Mission, offered a wide range of part-time learning opportunities, including one day workshops in leisure subjects and work-based learning qualifications;

(f)

the Plan for Playing Pitches in Plymouth outlined the Council and its partners objectives for playing pitches in the city and would be used as evidence to inform decision making relating to pitches;

(g)

the old Sports Facility Strategy needed updating;

(h)

a consultation was available online for people to view and complete if required;

(i)

Sport England now had more clearly defined capital available through its Places People Play Legacy funding programme.

In response to members’ questions it was reported that –

(j)

there had been a decline in the take up of part-time courses offered through (PACLS);

(k)

the organisation of PACLS had changed in order to access grants and other sources of funding;

(l)

accredited courses subsidised other courses;

(m)

a number of learning providers were only able to access funding for accredited courses;

(n)

a number of Plymouth schools had excellent sporting facilities,

(o)

most schools did not offer their sporting facilities to the local community – either because they closed at 4 pm or they chose not to do so;

(p)

the Sports Development Unit were proactively encouraging schools to offer their sporting facilities to their local communities;

(q)

the mission of the Plymouth School Sports Partnership, hosted by Sir John Hunt and Plymstock schools, was to positively impact on the lives of every child and young person attending partnership schools and their parents/carers through the opportunities they provided.