Closure of Merley Youth Club

Personal Statement by Cllr David Brown to other members of the Efficiency and Effectiveness Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Members will be aware of the crisis that has happened this past week with the closure of Merley Youth Club and the dramatic effect this has had on dozens of local families in closing the popular ‘Down in the Woods’ pre school.

This decision occurred on Friday 6 November. On Sunday 8 November I submitted a request to the Chair of this committee to include this issue as an Urgent Item on the agenda for this evenings’ meeting. Following a chasing email, I finally received a one line response on the evening of 11 November, less than 24 hours before the meeting, that “After consultation with officers the matter will not be taken as an urgent item but a statement will be made at the meeting tomorrow.” No explanation or reason was given for this decision.

I am somewhat staggered by this decision. There are very serious concerns relating to Property Services, the Corporate Asset Management Plan and business continuity planning which are raised by this event. I strongly believe that the correct approach would have been to include this item on the agenda with a brief update report and an opportunity for members of the committee to consider this and highlight their initial concerns for further scrutiny at a future meeting of the Committee.

Sadly this decision does not permit what I believe is not only the Constitutional and Democratic right of elected members to scrutinise the operation and decision making of the authority, but it also ignores the expectations of many of the staff, parents, children and young people affected by this event that the Council will properly investigate the circumstances which have led to this event and the lessons to be learned from it.

Albeit the full ramifications of this event are still developing and there will be many questions which will remain unanswered for some time, there are numerous issues which I believe are of importance to the Efficiency and Effectiveness Overview & Scrutiny Committee, including:

1. Why has there been a failure to invest in adequate maintenance and proper facilities at Merley Youth Club.
2. Why was this event managed in the way that it was?
3. What is the estimated financial cost of this crisis to the Council in terms of the emergency remedial work which is being carried out, not to mention the cost of officer time in handling this crisis.
4. What are the legal liabilities of the council in terms of compensation for the ‘Down in the Woods’ Pre School and Merley Youth Club for interruption to their normal operations and loss of income, not to mention the loss of earnings of the staff employed by them. Are their liabilities for the effect on the parents and children who have suffered substantial disruption, distress and in some cases loss of earnings?
5. Why was the business continuity of the tenants apparently not considered, with an evident failure to take early steps to avoid any disruption to Down on the Woods and Merley Youth Club, and the subsequent and unnecessary disruption and worry for the staff, parents and children.
6. Are there any initial thoughts about options for the longer term provision of a replacement facility at this location?
7. Most fundamentally and of greatest concern to me is whether this crisis highlights a systematic failure in the Borough’s approach to investment in adequate maintenance of the dozens of properties it owns throughout the town? Could a similar situation happen elsewhere with all the consequences for the disruption for local residents, not to mention the financial and legal implications for the Council and ultimately Council tax payers?

This decision, without any reasons being given, appears to be little more than an attempt by the current administration to deliberately stifle proper scrutiny. If these concerns are not allowed to be scrutinised in the proper place of the council committee, then it will have to be scrutinised in the public arena and the press instead. This is not in the interests of the Council, but this decision leaves members with little option.

Cllr David Brown Merley & Bearwood Ward

Member of Efficiency and Effectiveness Overview and Scrutiny Committee  12 November 2009 

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