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Weekly sparks council U-turn on bid to slash community centre cash

A council has performed a U-turn on plans to slash funding for 10 community centres after a weekly newspaper launched a campaign to save the facilities.

The Northamptonshire Telegraph has declared victory after “standing shoulder to shoulder” with the centres in Corby over proposed cuts to their funding by North Northamptonshire Council.

The council currently hands down a total of £112,000 in grants each year to help the centres meet basic running costs, with each receiving between £1,000 and £37,000.

Volunteers who run the facilities had shared fears with the Telegraph that many of them would have to close if the proposals, which were buried on page 124 of a financial report, got the green light.

Save Corby centres

The Telegraph designed a poster opposing the plans for readers to print at home, while its Corby edition also splashed on the campaign’s launch yesterday.

However, council leader Jason Smithers announced last night that the proposal will now not be included in the authority’s proposed 2023/24 budget.

Telegraph Corby reporter Kate Cronin told HTFP: “We have been overwhelmed with the response to this campaign. People in Corby very firmly and vociferously told the NNC executive that they would hold them to account at the ballot box if the cuts went ahead.

“This victory shows that local papers backing their communities is still incredibly important and can make a real difference.

“This is what we’re here for.”

The proposal had been due to go before the full council later this month.

Speaking to HTFP yesterday ahead of the council’s U-turn, Kate had said: “Like many controversial council cuts, the potential withdrawal of £112,000 in grants that fund 10 Corby community centres was hidden in a single line in a table on page 124 of budget papers that went before the council’s executive three days before Christmas.

“Thankfully, a very astute member of the public spotted it and alerted their local community centre who called us.

“Cuts like this should be explained to the people they affect in a transparent and democratic manner by the council, but they weren’t, so it was up to us to do so.

 

“We are fortunate to have very good links with our community centres and we already know the incredible work that goes on in them. The volunteers that run them have already stepped in to fill the universal services vacuum created by many years of cuts to local government funding.

“The Northants Telegraph is standing shoulder to shoulder with the people of Corby to run a campaign to help keep these vital centres open. The volunteers have been very clear that, without this core funding, they will have to close.

“We hope that the public pressure forces NNC to think about the issues that could be caused by the closure of community centres in some of the country’s most deprived areas. The cost to the council in the long-run will be far greater than the £112,000 they will save in the short term.”

Councillor Smithers said: “We are a listening council and we have heard the voice of the local community on this important issue.

“I do understand the vital role community centres play in our local neighbourhoods and we do need to listen carefully to what has been said.

“Removing this proposal from the budget at this stage is absolutely the right thing to do.

“I will ensure that we continue to engage with local communities across North Northamptonshire on this important issue.”