Campaigners fighting the closure of a youth centre in Redbridge have claimed the council went ahead with the decision without properly consulting the community.
Save Our Wanstead Youth Centre (SOWYC) claims Redbridge council did not adequately consult them on the plans and ignored the community’s concerns when deciding to close the youth centre on October 15.
The council plans to reopen the site as an ‘Education Hub and Youth Centre’.
This follows a year of tension since January 2023 when the council first proposed the closure.
SOWYC campaign leader, Liz Martins, claims that the number of people using the centre each week dropped from 2500 to 1000 after the announcement.
The centre is primarily used by people aged 13 to 19 and contains a stage, sports hall and music studio.
The group criticised the council consultation in a statement published before the closure was finalised.
SOWYC said an online-only survey consisted of unsubstantiated assertions and leading questions and believes the council excluded marginalised groups who did not have access to the internet.
They are unhappy the council based their judgement on the responses of 173 people rather than on the 4000 signatures SOWYC received on their petition.
Ashburn Holder, a campaigner and retired estate agent, claimed only youth centre members were allowed to respond to the survey: “The people have spoken and the local authority is not taking note of the will of the people. Therefore we should have a recall.”
The council decided to close the youth centre, which is run via the charity Vision, after an April 2022 review by building surveyor Palmer Glew estimated £2.4million of investment is needed to meet modern health and safety standards.
In their report, the council also project they spend £86,000 a year which the centre needs to stay afloat.
SOWYC also believe the council broke their rules by publishing a report the night before a September 7 committee meeting, when it should have been available for five days previous.
The group claimed this did not give them sufficient time to submit their questions ahead of the meeting.
The council’s chairwoman called this breach “unacceptable”.
SOWYC also said Vision failed to advertise the centre effectively which contributed to the youth centre’s financial decline.
Sant Kundi, 62, a retired service engineer, explained how he went out campaigning on the high street and met many young people who were excited to hear about the centre but had not known it existed.
Kundi, who used the youth centre as a teen, said the centre’s closure will have a detrimental impact on Wanstead’s youth.
He said: “We need to get children out, we need to get children active and we need places where children are safe.
“We had a lot of places that were funded by the local authority and they were running for years and they were taking people like me and other people off the street.”
On Thursday, Conservative councillor Paul Canal pressed the Labour council leader Jas Athwal to confirm a reopening date.
Athwal said: “I am loathe to say any kind of date because I want to make sure that we get it right.
“We want to create a facility which will be there for generations to come, but it will be as soon as possible.”
A spokesperson from Vision said: “Vision has actively promoted venue hire through the Vision website and social media platforms, marketing the site for both one off and regular club bookings.
“The site would require major investment from both a maintenance and improvement perspective to change this position.”
Redbridge council was approached for comment and responded with a September 6 press release.
Image credit: Save Our Wanstead Youth Centre Group
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