Forum: Access to sports facilities is balanced across different groups
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We thank Mr Yeo Eng Huat for his letter, “Balance private sports bookings with public access” (April 17).
ActiveSG, as part of Sport Singapore (SportSG), provides accessible facilities and programmes that enable the community to live better through sport. Our 21 ActiveSG Sport Centres islandwide, including more than 10 stadiums, are designed to serve the diverse sporting needs of our nation. In land-scarce Singapore, optimising facility usage across different stakeholder groups – including recreational users and athletes with training and competition needs at the youth, community, school, and high-performance levels – is a practical necessity.
In the example cited by Mr Yeo, ActiveSG Bukit Gombak Stadium was scheduled to be closed for certain periods in April to host events such as the National School Games, Women’s Premier League and Women’s National League matches. As these events are open to spectators, full venue closure is required to ensure safe access and crowd management. During training sessions, certain lanes may be closed off for safety reasons, such as to prevent collisions with athletes or contact with stray balls.
ActiveSG recognises the importance of providing the public with advance notice of facility closures and adjustments in opening hours. We communicate these details through several channels including our sport centres’ social media pages and on-site signages, and where possible, provide information on the nearest alternative venue to help the public plan for alternative arrangements.
Where feasible, partial closures are implemented to keep some facilities open for public use. ActiveSG also works with event organisers to limit closures to a few hours or half-day periods, that is, only what is necessary for the event. Open parks near our sport centres also serve as alternative venues for physical activities. Members of the public are encouraged to follow the respective ActiveSG Sport Centres’ social media channels for the latest updates on facility availability.
ActiveSG will continue to work with relevant stakeholders to balance the needs of different user groups, ensuring that users at both recreational and competitive levels have access to facilities for exercise and sport.
Tan Hock Leong
Chief, ActiveSG
Sport Singapore
