Stubbington Green Runners

HAMPSHIRE'S road races are under threat after the police's decision to charge for all events which need a police presence. It is a move which has caused shockwaves and running clubs across the county are now considering the future of its road races. (Article courtesy of the Southern Daily Echo)

IT'S a rainy, windswept morning in Lee-on-the-Solent. It's one of those mucky Sunday mornings when you would much rather be indoors enjoying a late lie-in or a fry-up.

Julie, a special constable based at Gosport police station, is chatting with a lady from Raynet, and being offered a steaming flask of hot chocolate from one of the yellow-bibbed marshalls. "I wish I'd put on an extra layer of socks," admits Julie. This is the Stubbington 10km road race, a big race which draws more than 1,000 runners from all over the region.

It is a logistical nightmare. Runners start off in Stubbington, hare down Marine Parade into Lee, before winding their way past the golf course, skirting Rowner, and then heading back into Stubbington.

Usually there is a police motorcyclist to escort the front runners. This year, for some reason, there is none. Julie is among a team of police officers and specials who were on duty at the race earlier this month manning key junctions on the race route and directing traffic. She is a civilian who took redundancy from P&O last year when it closed its operation in Portsmouth, and now she is looking for a job. "I'm not sure I'd fancy working in the police full-time," Julie said. "Although I am interested in forensics."

Special constables, who give at least four hours of their time a week, are a vital link between the regular full-time police officers and their local community. They are unpaid. This year it cost the organisers, Stubbington Green Runners, nothing for the police presence. Instead they made a donation to the Police Benevolent Fund. Next January, however, the club will pay.

Running clubs across Hampshire are outraged that they will be charged £40 an hour for each police constable, and £20 an hour for each special constable. The minimum amount of hours is four. It's not only sports events which will be hit, but also community events such as carnivals and fairs, where road closures and a police presence is required.

John Marsh is administrator of the Hampshire Road Race League, and the Stubbington 10km race is one of its events. He is outraged. "Road running has been dealt a major blow," he said. "Over the last two or three years, race organisers have come under increasing pressure from the police. "They have had to look at finding venues to hold their races off-road or been put in an impossible position where the police could not agree with organisers for new suitable courses in some towns.

"This saw the Victory 5 in Portsmouth, one of the UK's top races and one of the oldest, forced off the road and on to the foreshore at Hilsea, and the Basingstoke 10km, a race considered good enough to hold top championship events, out of existence.

"Now road running is going to be priced out of existence by the police. "Hampshire police have suddenly dropped some very high charges on us with no consultation at county level or a warning." The Totton 10km road race takes place in April. It is a popular event, and race director Sean Driscoll said is waiting to find out whether it would be hit by the charges.

"We have not received a letter from the police yet, but I'm pretty certain we will have to pay," he said. "We are already having to pay the council for the road closure. Last year we got charged for the first time for this. "I am annoyed about it. This is a community event.

"We may have to make the race a cross-country event, somewhere in the New Forest. It would probably be less hassle."
Race organisers have been told that they will need to settle their account seven days before the race.

Mr Marsh, who is also secretary of the Hampshire Athletic Association's road racing section, added: "It is our understanding that if there are other higher priority matters elsewhere then the police may not actually attend, or leave whenever they like during the event.

"They do not tell us if we will get our money back. "So far we know of quotes of between £960 to over £9,000 for races. These charges will easily be absorbed by big business races like the Great South Run in Portsmouth, which pays over £37,000 but charges a £27 entry fee, and some of the bigger races in the county.

"But having already spoken to some race directors of the smaller races, and one very well-established local race, they have said it would not be viable to hold the events any more. "The running clubs' anger is directed at a time when sport is high on the political agenda and the government is hanging on to the coat-tails of London's successful 2012 Olympic bid.

John Marsh explained how one Hampshire club uses the money from the races to fund its coaching and the transport of junior runners. "This would force them to consider the club's future structure," he said. "All the money from club-organised road races goes back into the sport.

"In the case of athletic clubs, the money helps coach youngsters and buy equipment. Road running clubs use the money to help keep membership fees down and to send people on coaching courses. "Also thousands of pounds go into a regional pot that is distributed to help fund athletics projects right across the region.

"On top of helping to fund athletics at all levels and ages, thousands of pounds are raised for charities.
"This sport benefits everybody.

"When you have a government going on about obesity and with 2012 on the horizon, these charges are ludicrous. We would like to see a fixed amount set at the start of the year depending on the duration of the event. This would then allow race directors to budget for the charges in their race entry fees.

"With 2012 coming up, there will be no road running because all the road races will have folded. There will be no athletic tracks because there is a lack of funding and no cross-country because all the fields will have houses built on them.

"Without them there will be no athletes, so why bother with 2012? Just build more cardiac wards because of all the obese children and adults.

" THE decision to charge for community events is part of a national initiative, according to Hampshire Constabulary.
They say the measures have been handed down by the Association of Chief Police Officers to bring forces into line nationwide.

Previously, special deals were struck to keep prices low, but now the climate has changed. The money raised would help finance police training, support and transport.

Richard Croucher, head of financial accounting at Hampshire police said: "The rate changes are being set by the Association of Chief Police Officers and not by individual forces. We have little say on the decisions. They are being laid down nationally and are above the rate of inflation."

These charges will apply to commercial events. Community events such as road races and carnivals will receive a 50 per cent reduction. In a document published last year by the Association of Chief Police Officers entitled "Guidance on charging for police services", it says: "Special policing services are normally provided to an event - either singular (pop concert) or a series of events (policing football), and the principle has been established of achieving a full economic cost recovery of relevant costs.  This should be applied  - particularly for commercial events. 

"However, in line with the concept of risk assessment for policing events within the community, Chief Constables should be able to abate charges for events in certain circumstances.  "A decision matrix approach has been developed to help determine different circumstances and at the same time give some discretion.

"Small-scale events can be policed without charge below a threshold level." And the document adds: "A general principle of the recovery of policing costs at no detriment to the local community has also been established."