[ad_1]
Towns and villages in West Lothian are at risk of losing vital community centres due to budget cuts, with councils having to consider transferring ownership of buildings to user groups.
Management teams at all 38 community centres in the county have been told they must consider taking over their buildings or leasing them.
One volunteer in Livingston told Local Democracy Reporter she had been “buried awake at night” over the proposals.
Volunteers fear the move will be hugely disruptive and will cut £1m from the council’s increasingly tight budget.
The West Lothian Voluntary Sector Portal has warned that community groups made up of volunteers face an “impossible task” of becoming owners of commercial operations.
Council officials met with the management committee last month and the council proposed either transferring or introducing a lease before the start of the next financial year, with a decision to be made by the end of this year.
Outlining the plans on the council’s website, Ralph Bell, the council’s customer and community services manager, said: “No final decision has been made on the future of these facilities, but given the dire financial situation all councils find themselves in, it is absolutely necessary to review and change the way services are delivered.
“We simply can’t afford to continue to provide the same level of service.”
He added: “At the moment, individual management boards receive income through community centres and village halls.
“West Lothian Council receives no income from lettings but covers all costs of staffing, heating and electricity, maintenance and upkeep of the facilities.
“This financial model is no longer viable or sustainable.”
Mr Bell stressed: “Our primary objective is to work with the management committee to help ensure the facility remains open under the new operating arrangements.”
A VSG spokesperson said: “All community centres have three options:
1 – Ownership through community asset transfer
2 – Fully responsible for the repair and insurance of the rental
3 – Accept all fees charged by the Council
A growing number of small local community groups are expressing concerns about proposals to close and repurpose community and partnership centres, particularly those that operate within them.
A VSG spokesman added: “They face an impossible task to shoulder the operational costs of running these facilities without the knowledge and funding to do so. Many groups say they simply cannot undertake these roles.
“Many groups host multi-purpose events and host groups that meet regularly, such as art groups, activity classes, Girl Scouts, etc. These groups are often the lifeblood of the community, and without a place to go, many individuals and groups become isolated and disconnected.
“It feels like responsibility is being thrust upon an inexperienced council with little time, limited support or information and no fallback plan. The centres that survive need to be commercially viable. Community groups and charities will not be able to afford commercial market rents.
“If the centres do not survive, the community groups and charities based in them will be left without a foundation. Many charities will struggle to survive, and the council relies on them to support those in need.”
Julie Henderson from Mosswood Community Centre in Knightsridge told LDRS: “Mosswood Community Centre has remained open over the past few years since the pandemic began, creating a welcoming space and running a food shop two days a week. None of this would be possible without the volunteers.
“These volunteers are also members of the management committee and donate their free time. The biggest decision we are asked to make is when do we prepare Christmas lunch for the pensioners?
“Now we are being asked to take ownership of a building that now has to make enough money to at least break even.
“Most groups in community centres are council groups. Lettings for these groups will no longer be free. Where will these groups go if the centres close? This will have a severe impact on the most vulnerable.
“I lie awake at night worrying about staff losing their jobs. If we don’t come up with a magical way to raise £100,000 a year then the group will cease to function and the children will miss out.”
In Addiwell, villagers rely on the community center to host sports and youth clubs. Even the adjacent school uses the community center to host sports activities.
Avril Finlayson, from the centre’s management committee, fears that charging higher fees will prompt clubs to find other places to meet, or discourage young people from joining youth clubs.
She noted that the village had relatively low rates of youth disorder and arson, which was apparently linked to the wide range of clubs and sports available to young people.
Funds raised through the Community Centre Club are given back into the community to pay for children’s bus fares and other community benefits.
The Addiewell Centre’s management committee soon realised that if they were to run it as a business, they would need a full-time member of staff to manage the venue and promote bookings. Currently, individual groups manage their own use through the council’s ownership and booking system.
This cost does not include paying for business repairs and maintenance and utilities.
Avril Finlayson also questioned the reliance on volunteers to devote their time to community centre activities. “If it was commercialised, there wouldn’t be so many people coming to help.”
Council officers will continue to meet with community groups and the proposal will go to a council committee for further discussion before a final decision is made.
The main option for the council is asset transfer. The rules for asset transfer (where a user group assumes ownership of a council asset) have been amended, but in the years since asset transfer was first introduced, only three council assets have been approved with the financial capacity to be maintained by a user group.
Community centres are obviously not only the venues and bases of councils, but also the lifeblood of all the communities they serve. At Knightsridge and Addiewell and 36 other locations, these centres help sustain communities. The big question for the coming months is whether communities will have enough money to help sustain these centres.
Follow STV News on WhatsApp
Scan the QR code on your mobile device to get the latest news from all over the country
[ad_2]
Source link
