THE SHOCKING depth of cuts to youth services could see three quarters of south Warwickshire’s youth centres axed by the county council. Three centres – Campion Youth Wing in Sydenham Drive, Kenilworth Youth and Community Centre in Abbey End, and Warwick Youth and Community Centre in Coten End – face the chop. Services for young people which are focused mainly on leisure activities are being targeted, with the council claiming these are not its responsibility. Management of these will either be transferred to the voluntary sector and local communities, or the buildings will be sold off.
A public meeting is being held at Kenilworth Youth Centre, on Monday April 18 between 6.30pm and 8.30pm, for people to have their say.
Consultation on the plans is underway and runs until May 9 but Chris Spreadbury, vice-chairman of Unite’s Warwickshire youth and community branch, branded the consultation a “sham”.
He said: “We feel as though the council have already decided what they are going to do, which youth centres they are going to sell off, and the consultation is not going to influence them. “And I don’t think people will suddenly rise up together and take these services over – at least not straightaway. For a start where is the money going to come from?
“Morale is really poor within youth services as no-one knows exactly what’s going to happen.”
Warwickshire County Council does plan to maintain Lillington Youth and Community Centre as a ‘centre of excellence’, and as a facility paramount to early intervention services in the area.
The designated centres of excellence – four across the region – will act as bases from which expertise and support can be offered to local organisations and at which quality programmes will be offered to young people that can be shared as good practice.
The council pulled the plug on the entire youth service – which includes all 34 youth groups in Warwickshire – last year in a bid to save £3.5million, putting 359 jobs at risk. The controversial decision saw communities, campaigners and unions fighting to try and stop the cull and petitions – one totalling a massive 12,746 signatures – were submitted. The council then announced it was putting aside £1million for a ‘Transformation of Youth Service’ – which would see mobile services set up and roaming youth workers conducting meetings in places such as coffee shops.
But Mr Spreadbury added: “Young people are being fobbed off – £1million is a significant cut in the budget. It sounds as if these centres of excellence are going to be the only places where there’s something going on, which will make it difficult for all young people who want these services to access them.”
Cllr Heather Timms, the county council’s portfolio holder for children, young people and families, insisted the new proposals would meet the needs of Warwickshire’s young people.
She said: “Youth work has a huge impact on the lives of young pople, their families and the community as a whole, and this will not be abandoned.”
Final recommendations for each centre will be discussed by Cabinet on June 16.
No comments:
Post a Comment