Residents campaigning against Redbridge’s plan to close Wanstead Youth Centre have stepped up their action and are planning a demonstration outside the Ilford Town Hall next week while the council makes its decision.
Campaigners took to the street over the weekend to make their case that youth centres play a vital role for the community.
The campaign says: “The Council’s Cabinet will make its decision on the future of Wanstead Youth Centre on Thursday 14 September. Before that, on Thursday 7 September, the Council’s Overview & Scrutiny Committee will be carrying out ‘pre-decision scrutiny’. Despite the Council’s own Constitution stating that reports for this purpose should be available five working days before Committee meetings, the ‘Wanstead Youth Centre Recommendations’ paper has not been made available to the public via the Committee agenda page. As of Tuesday 5 September this is not available.”
The campaign has submitted a paper to be considered alongside the Council’s recommendations paper, outlining its concerns about the consultation process which it says has been flawed, questions about how the centre has been run in the past, and challenges to the council on how it plans to meet its obligations to run youth services.