Rev. Alistair Helm, Vicar of the Church of The Nativity,
Cavendish Road, was introduced to the meeting.
Alistair thanked the Chair for the opportunity to come to
the meeting and explained that the Church of The Nativity was a
joint venture between the Church of England and the Methodist
Church. Alistair then gave a presentation on the church’s
proposals for the Lansdowne Neighbourhood Centre:
- The church was seeking council and community
support for a partnership between Leicester City Council and the
Church of The Nativity, to enable the Lansdowne Neighbourhood
Centre to become a focus for the community.
- The church hoped to invest in the fabric of the
centre to enable the centre to become an improved facility for
people in Aylestone.
- The present church building had no parking
facilities and the building needed investment to make it suitable
for users with disabilities.
- A survey carried out
by church members showed that Aylestone residents wanted more
facilities for young and older people. Alistair explained that the
church already had a varied outreach, which included coffee
mornings, jumble sales, a drama group, a supper club and a walking
club, but the church wanted to do more.
- Age Concern had indicated that they would welcome
facilities in Aylestone for older people, because presently they
needed to travel into town.
- Why Lansdowne Neighbourhood Centre? The Centre was
at the heart of the community, and there was plenty of space,
however it was a tired building. The feeling was that it was
waiting to be transformed. Alistair added that the proposals for
the extension had come from the Leicester City Council’s
property department.
- The Church of the Nativity hoped to sell their
current building, invest some of the money and use the balance to
improve the Centre. The Centre would require a lot of work and
people from the church had been involved in helpful discussions
with Steve Goddard, Head of Community Services, Adults and Housing
Department.
- Steve explained that discussions about the
proposal had been taking place for a considerable length of time.
The Council had been very concerned as the Centre was tired and
dilapidated, and as the Council managed about 40 buildings, it was
difficult to resource them all. Steve
added that this was a real opportunity to work with the Church and
put the building at the heart of the community.
The following questions were
asked:
- Will people who currently use the building, still
be able to use it?
Yes, existing people will still be able
to use the Centre, but it was anticipated that new groups will use
it.
- Is there an assurance that the Church on Cavendish
Road will not be demolished?
Alistair explained that it would not be
possible to say what would happen to the building.
- Who will own the building if the Church of the
Nativity move into the Lansdowne Neighbourhood
Centre?
Steve explained that there would be a
lease agreement. The Council did not have money to invest and were
therefore looking for a working partnership with the
Church.
- Will the building be a Church as
well?
Alistair said that there would be a
worship area, and this was not uncommon now. An example was given
of Hope Hamilton Church, which shared premises with a
school.
Some residents expressed concerns that the extension might
result in loss of garden space and parking and suggested that other
avenues could be explored. Further
comments were also made though that the proposals were welcome and
that they presented a good opportunity for improving facilities for
the Aylestone community.
Alistair was thanked for his presentation.