Negotiations on under-threat Sedgley health centre's future continue
Dudley Council has confirmed negotiations are continuing to secure the future of a health centre in Sedgley.
Fears are mounting the health centre and library at Ladies Walk will close when the lease expires in March 2026.
The centre was purpose built under a PFI scheme and is owned by private company Aviva; it was leased back to the public sector.
Dudley Council is leading negotiations to renew the lease and keep services where they are but local people are becoming increasingly concerned that no deal has been done and services will have to move out.
Councillor Damian Corfield, cabinet member for neighbourhoods, said: “Negotiations on a new lease are ongoing with the landlord.
“While we hope to have a further update on progress at the next meeting in September, we acknowledge that commercial negotiations can take some time to complete.”
Dudley MP Sonia Kumar, a leading campaigner to retain services at Ladies Walk, is keeping up pressure on the council to complete the deal.
Ms Kumar said: “I’m looking for a firm commitment that they will get this over the line and we have Ladies Walk secured.
“I want to see that commitment sooner rather than later, the council had an opportunity five years ago when they knew the lease was going to end.
“I wont let this go without a fight.”
In May, Ms Kumar presented a petition to the House of Commons calling on the government to ‘to communicate urgently with the owners of the Ladies Walk centre property, Dudley council and the NHS to secure the centre and stop its closure’.
She told MPs the 300 signatures on the petition plus a further 1,300 names on an online petition demonstrated the strength of feeling about the centre among the people of Dudley.
A date and location for the public meeting in September is yet to be confirmed.
