Fresh talks on Staffordshire youth club closure plans
Fresh hope was today given to campaigners fighting proposed youth facility cuts in Staffordshire as it emerged plans could go back before council bosses for scrutiny.
All 34 council-run youth clubs are set to shut across the county unless volunteers come forward to take over the running of the services.
Staffordshire County Council – which is trying to save £102 million over five years – branded the service out of date and said it cost too much money to run. The authority's cabinet passed the plans last month – but they have now been called in for scrutiny at a meeting next week after 11 councillors raised concerns.
The corporate review committee can either approve the cuts, send them back to the cabinet for changes to be made, or put the plans before a meeting of the full council.
Among the councillors objecting are Cannock Council leader George Adamson, who says the 'decimation' of the service could lead to an increase in anti-social behaviour.
He added: "Without underestimating the huge value and contribution of volunteers, youth work is now a largely graduate profession, and the quality of the provision and thus positive outcomes for our young people is in doubt if the current expertise is lost."
Bosses say the move will see them deliver more 'tailored and flexible' youth services in the community, and that three-quarters of young people in Staffordshire do not attend traditional council-run youth centres.
There are no immediate plans to sell off the buildings the clubs are based in, but bosses say they will assess the potential future usage of the buildings. If the changes go through, any youth clubs operating in the county in the future would have to be run by other organisations such as schools, colleges, voluntary and community groups.
Since the cuts were first proposed earlier this year, young people across the county have campaigned against them.
Teenagers gathered for a protest in Stafford town centre in February.
Some 16,318 names were collected on a petition against the closures, and there were a total of 3,249 responses during a public consultation, with 2,511 from young people.
Some 82 per cent of young people who used youth clubs said they did not agree with the council's plans, and 65 per cent of people disagreed overall.
Councillor Mark Sutton said: "Three quarters of young people have effectively already told us that traditional council-run youth clubs no longer meet their needs by not attending. At a time where we need to make the most of the resources available, it is difficult to justify spending millions on clubs that are not fully used."
