Isle of Wight Council was in the second round of authorities to develop Local Area Agreements (LAAs). Their 2006 LAA, along with the subsequent refresh for April 2007, reflect the importance of culture and sport to a range of local priority outcomes, including healthier communities and older people, safer and stronger communities, and economic development and enterprise.

The Isle of Wight LAA contains 16 outcomes grouped under the four blocks of:

• children and young people
• healthier communities
• safer and stronger communities
• economic development and enterprise

Goal:

• increase in sport and physical activity to improve quality of life and reduce obesity levels within local communities

Measures:

• percentage increase in the number of adults and older people taking part in regular sport/physical activity – number of ‘One Card’ holders
• percentage increase in number of opportunities to engage in sport/physical activity taken up by adults and older people
• percentage increase in the number of young people taking part in regular sport/physical activity – number of ‘One Card’ holders
• percentage increase in number of opportunities to engage in sport/physical activity taken up by young people

Goal:

• improve the local environment

Measures:

• hectares of sustainably managed statutory Local Nature Reserve
• number of commercial organisations engaged in the Green Island Award scheme

Goal:

• improve value and quality of tourism

Measures:

• value of staying visitors
• value of day visitors
• increase the value of yachting
• percentage of accommodation providers across all sectors participating in Quality Assurance schemes
• mean quality rating of accommodation - guest accommodation using ‘Visit Britain Quality Assurance Scheme'

Examples of progress from the 2006-07 update report include that indicators for participation rates in sports and physical activity for older and younger people have all achieved 2006-07 targets. A range of activities have been implemented including:

• free junior holiday swimming
• junior fitness classes
• increased community use of multi-use games areas
• refurbished gyms at Medina and Heights leisure centres
• water safety campaign with Middle Schools
• increased partnership working with concessionary ‘One Cards’
• extended GP referral
• growth in ‘One Card’ memberships

Planned activities for 2007-08 include:

• targeting obesity in young people through GP referral
• developing specialist fitness equipment for 5-8 yr olds
• review of school swimming provision

With respect to tourism:

• the island’s first on line booking website was launched
• the destination management system operated by the Council began transferring online data on accommodation through the Englandnet system to 42 Visit Britain websites worldwide. In parallel e-business support training sessions were held with over 50 businesses.
• public relations coverage for the island and its major festivals significantly increased
• the level of participation in the National Quality Assurance Scheme (NQAS) increased and 97 establishments achieved 4 or 5 star status. The island now has one of the best participation rates in the NQAS at nearly twice the national average