Agenda item

Ann Habens, Director Safer & Stronger Communities, will be present to discuss the current situation regarding the Manor House Neighbourhood Centre.

The Chair advised the meeting that no decision had been taken to date on the future of the Manor House Neighbourhood Centre, stating that she was aware that a petition was circulating, although she had not seen it yet.  The Chair then advised the meeting that she wanted to hear the views of as many people as possible, including views on what they would like to see happen to the Centre.

 

Ann Habens, Director of Safer and Stronger Communities with Leicester City Council, and Steve Goddard, Head of Community Services with Leicester City Council, were present to answer any queries relating to Manor House Neighbourhood Centre.

 

Ann Habens stressed that no decisions had been taken about the Centre, as options for its use were still being explored.  Ann Habens displayed a map at the meeting that showed other facilities in the area and where services in the area currently were being delivered.

 

Residents suggested that a lunch club and bowls sessions could be held at the Centre, as they would provide something for older people to go to.  The Evergreens Group, a social club for older people, also used to meet at the Centre on a Tuesday afternoon, after the lunch club.

 

Ann Habens advised the meeting that, in considering services that could be offered at the Centre, account had to be taken of the fact that this was an old building, which needed considerable investment to bring it up to standard, in particular in relation to health and safety issues.  This was one reason why there had been fairly low usage of the building before its current closure. 

 

In addition, community facilities were available at a number of other venues in the area, but it was recognised that they could be some way from where people lived and that people liked using the Manor House.  It also was noted that the lunch club that previously had been held there had been run by the Community Services Officer, as this was not the sort of activity that these Centres usually offered.

 

Members of the community suggested that:-

 

·              The Council had used the death of the Community Services Officer to close the Centre and keep it closed, despite the need in the area for a community centre.  There had been no problems with the operation of the Centre before the Community Services Officer died;

 

·              The Manor House had been used by older people and youth groups throughout the year, with the green at the front providing an ideal place for young people to play safely;

 

·              Equipment in the Centre could be used elsewhere while the future of the Centre was decided;

 

·              The green area could be developed for youth use;

 

·              The front of the building stated that it was a young people’s centre, but the young were actively discouraged from using the Centre by a lot of users.  A change in management style and culture therefore was needed;

 

·              If the Centre had been advertised more widely, more people would have used it;

 

·              One reason that people did not use the Centre was that facilities were provided in the park.  However, these had been allowed to deteriorate, which made the social problems in the area worse;

 

·              The Centre was conveniently placed for people from both Rowley Fields and the West End area, so served a lot of people.  As such, the Centre should be opened again and its operation monitored;

 

·              The Centre was a grand, historic building that should not be demolished, but should be preserved as a heritage site.  This was supported by the meeting;

 

·              Some people did not like going to the Centre, as it could be very dark in the area and the young people there could be intimidating; and

 

·              Some people were unhappy that the green area had been fenced off.

 

In response, the following points were noted:-

 

·              The number of people using the Centre had reduced significantly in recent years.  For example, between April and October 2009 there had been 12,000 users of the Centre.  However, in the same period, over 23,000 people had used the Tudor Centre, over 64,000 had used the BRITE Centre and over 112,000 had used the Fosse Neighbourhood Centre;

 

·              The Centre had been advertised in the same way as other centres had, but members of the public had not responded to this;

 

·              Approximately 5 years ago, members of the local community, along with a Council officer, had established a user group, to try to encourage more people to use the Centre, but the number of participants in this had dropped to the extent that the group no longer functioned;

 

·              When the previous Community Services Officer died, a number of services did not want to return to the Centre.  This had led to the decision to review how the Centre was used and what services or facilities people wanted to see there;

 

·              The green area in front of the Centre was school playing fields land, which had been fenced off after it was used by Travellers.  Police advice had been received that the green area was not educational land, as it was not fenced off.  Fencing therefore had been erected and the gates improved to stop anti-social behaviour there and to stop Travellers coming back on to the site.  It now appeared that this had simply displaced the problems and this would be investigated.  Officers also had been asked to investigate whether it could be used as general open space;

 

·              There had been a number of different sets of play equipment on the green area, but they had all been damaged by arson and/or vandalism to the extent that they became unsafe;

 

·              A debate needed to be held on what facilities were needed in the area.  This should include whether the Manor House was the best place to provide these, the quality of services that could be offered to the community and the type of building that people wanted to use;

 

·              In view of the Council’s current budget restrictions, funding for any improvements to the Centre would have to be prioritised against other projects;

 

·              The Council could only transfer assets to the community, not liabilities.  Therefore, the Centre could not be transferred to the community to operate in its present condition;

 

·              It was recognised that the building would deteriorate if not used.  The Ward Members expressed the view that they would not be happy for it to be either demolished, as it was officially recognised as a Building of Local Interest, or left empty;

 

Some concern was expressed that, although people were alarmed by the death of the previous Community Services Officer, they wanted to continue to use the Centre.  It also was reported that staff at the Centre had been encouraged to not have user groups in the Centre.

 

A resident reported that:-

 

·              All of the lights in the Centre had been turned off.  This had been reported in November 2009 and several times since, but nothing had been done about it.  Also, the grass at the Centre was not being cut.

 

Ann Habens explained that there had been a problem with the fuses at the Centre and undertook to look in to why they were still off.  She also undertook to investigate why the grass was not being cut.

 

·              He had a tenancy at the Centre and had worked for the Council for a number of years, but had not been contacted since the Centre closed, including not being asked if he needed any assistance following the events surrounding the death of the Centre’s Community Services Officer. 

 

The Chair apologised on behalf of the Council that he had not been contacted, as she was under the impression that officers had been going in to the Centre.  She also explained that the Code of Conduct for Councillors did not allow them to become involved in an individual’s job.  However, the tenant’s details had been passed to officers so they could address the situation, including determining what support he needed.

 

·              He had to move young people on from the Centre, as they were causing a nuisance in the area.  In the evenings, anti social behaviour also occurred in cars using the alley by the Centre.

 

The Police explained that there had been a history of anti-social behaviour around that area, but they had not received any reports recently.  Anyone experiencing or witnessing anti-social behaviour was asked to report it to the Police.  In the meantime, the Police offered to discuss these issues with the resident and report back to the next meeting.

 

Ann Habens advised the meeting that, once options for the future use of the Centre had been identified, they would be put out for consultation.  This analysis would include considering what currently was available, where it was located and where there were gaps in provision for the short, medium and long term.  It was hoped that consultation could start in July or August 2010.

 

Residents welcomed the proposal to consult the community, as it was felt that nothing would work at the Centre unless they were involved and people would not attend the Centre unless they felt involved.  This included ensuring that an honest result was publicised.

 

The meeting was reminded that consideration also needed to be given to what would happen with other facilities in the area if the Manor House was brought up to standard.  However, it was recognised that, the longer the Manor House was left, the more it would deteriorate and the more it would cost to bring up to the required standard.   At present, running costs alone for the Centre, (without any improvements), were approximately £47,000 per year.  Ann Habens therefore suggested that the Centre would need to generate more than that per year, in order to provide funds for maintenance and emergency work.

 

The Chair advised that a meeting had been held with a private developer who had approached the Council with a proposal to create a 5-aside football facility on the green area, (on a similar basis to the current Goals facility).  Under this proposal, the school would provide the land and the developer would build the pitches.  These pitches then would be used by the school during the day and hired out for public use at weekends.  In addition, the former telephone building would be developed for changing facilities and other community facilities also would be provided in that building.

 

The Ward Councillors reported that they had some concerns about what residents would feel about this proposal, especially those whose homes backed on to it.  It also was unclear how the project would be funded, as the Council had no uncommitted capital funds available. 

 

Although these were very tentative suggestions, the Ward Councillors invited comments on them, stressing that they were not linked in any way with any decisions on the future of the Manor House Neighbourhood Centre.

 

It was questioned whether the developer intended to buy or lease the land and, if a lease was proposed, how long this would be for.  In reply, the meeting noted that this had not been discussed, as the meeting held was an initial one, to discuss the outline plans.

 

During the ensuing discussion on this, it also was noted that, in all of the spatial surveys that the Council was required to do, this area was shown as lacking in green space.  As such, some open area would have to be provided.  Also, there were very specific rules about what land designated as school playing fields could be used for.

 

There was some support for the principle of providing a Goals-style facility.  However, residents questioned how this would fit with the planning application being submitted by St Mary’s School for a car park and classroom on that site.  The Ward Councillors stated that they were not aware of this application.

 

In conclusion, the meeting was reminded that further information would be made available over the summer and anyone interested on being on the formal consultation list was invited to leave their details with the Members Support Officer.

 

Action	Officer Identified	Deadline
Investigations to be undertaken in to why the lights at the Centre are still switched off and the grass is not being cut	Ann Habens	As soon as possible
The anti-social behaviour being experienced around the Manor House Neighbourhood Centre to be discussed with the resident who reported it and a report made to the next Community Meeting	Police	Next meeting