WEYBRIDGE
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Weybridge Hall - the background
Community want to keep the Hall open for local use
On 8 December 2010, a Conservative majority in Elmbridge Borough Council voted to make an 'efficiency saving' of £17,000 (by terminating the management contract with DC Leisure), after 'Relocating as many hirers as possible from Weybridge Hall to the Weybridge Day Centre'.
This will effectively end community use of the hall.
The decision has upset many people who currently use the Weybridge Hall and do not want to relocate.
Sudden proposal
The proposal for the 'efficiency saving' appeared out of the blue, as a single line in a spreadsheet presented to the 24th Nov 2010 Cabinet meeting. There was no hint of the proposal at the various meetings of the EBC Community Facilities Task Group in October and November (attended by EBC Cabinet members), even though the task group was explicitly looking at community halls, their management, and their value to the community.
Not 'closed', simply not to be used by the community!
Elmbridge Borough Council leader Cllr O'Reilly is adamant that no decision has been taken to 'close' Weybridge Hall. However, the decision by the Conservative majority in a vote at Elmbridge Borough Council on 8 Dec has the effect ending Weybridge Hall's current community use, through 'relocating hirers'. The word 'close' has been very carefully avoided.
What can you do?
If you are interested in joining the protest against the ending of community use of Weybridge Hall, please contact Graham Winton on 01932 253653
The Battle to Save Weybridge Hall -- what are the FACTS?
Liberal Democrats Andrew Davis, Cllr Miles Macleod and Cllr Tim Crowther
all support Weybridge Hall
. We understand that the prolonged discussions between Elmbridge Borough Council, The Friends of Weybridge Hall, The Weybridge Society and DC Leisure Ltd have been highly positive and an announcement is imminent.
These were the words of Conservative councillor Simon Dodsworth and Council Leader John O'Reilly at a formal meeting of Elmbridge Borough Council (see minutes in panel below). Who were they talking about? Graham Winton, chairman of Weybridge Old Folks, and former Lib Dem councillor. Graham's crime? He had spoken out locally against Weybridge Hall being closed. But there has been no decision to close the hall, said the Leader. The decision was to relocate the hirers away from the hall, and to save £17000 by ending the management contract. Now, what is the difference between stopping people hiring a hall and closing it to use by those people? Answers on a postcard please.
So, what are the facts?
Conservative Cllr Dodsworth wrote negatively about the hall in a recent 'In Touch' newsletter, saying "Weybridge hall is by far the least used. On average it's only used about 20% of the time." Hang on. What are the real facts?
FACT: Last year the main hall of Weybridge Hall was hired for 2063 hours. That is an average of about 40 hours per week, every week for 52 weeks. Which is 38% overall (across a 15 hour hiring day, 7 days a week), and way more at peak hours when it is often fully booked – a key measure of success.
FACT: Weybridge main hall was hired more than most other Elmbridge halls.
who have put forward a bid to run the hall for the community. Weybridge Lib Dems believe that the Hall is needed, wanted and can become an even more valued local facility. We are hopeful we may see a change of mind by the council over relocating hirers.
, after Cllr Miles Macleod first alerted the local community to the threat to Weybridge Hall
Below are further exchanges on the topic, from Elmbridge Borough Council, following robust defence of the hall locally by Graham Winton, chair of Weybridge Old Folks Club and former councillor for Weybridge North.
Extract from
ELMBRIDGE BOROUGH COUNCIL
MINUTES of PROCEEDINGS at the MEETING of the COUNCIL
held on Wednesday, 23rd
February, 2010‘Will the Leader provide an update on the developments and arrangements for Hirers of the Weybridge Hall?’
I am very happy to clarify the position and hope that in doing so I can clear up any misunderstandings and give some reassurance.
The whole process that we are going through is not about ‘doing down’ the Hall it is about ‘building up’ the Weybridge Centre. In short, it is trying to convert, as we have done in Thames Ditton, a day centre into a community centre. When I last took questions on this issue in December, I was not able to give any information more than generalities about what we proposed to do as regards building up the centre. Today, as we look in our budget papers we will see we are putting, hopefully with the Council’s consent, our money where our mouth is, in that there is a £70,000 proposal from the capital budget to increase the facilities and improve the facilities at the Weybridge Day Centre. That is a reflection of this Administration’s commitment to building up the day centre.
Our Community Support Services Division has now written to the 14 regular users of the Hall, to assess their needs about relocation. Many, and I hope the majority, will be able to move to the new community centre, which is currently in Weybridge. Those discussions will continue and therefore I can repeat that the discussions about the future of Weybridge Hall will then begin. We haven’t even begun the discussion, let alone made the decision and when that process begins there will be extensive consultation not only with Councillors but also with local community groups before any decision is taken about Weybridge Hall. I don’t think I can be any clearer than that and in that sense I am repeating what several Members of this Administration have already told either the Overview and Scrutiny Committee or this Council.
Is the Leader aware of the article on the Surrey Herald Website today – ‘Max Clifford to save Weybridge Hall from Closure’? Apparently, Mr. Max Clifford has pledged to pay £17,000 rent to keep the Hall open. Is the Leader going to take advantage of this very kind and generous offer?
Indeed, I have seen the article and I have to say, I think ‘well done Max’ and if there is that commitment from Mr. Clifford and he is prepared to work with say the Weybridge Society and others to bring a proposal as to how the community can run that Hall, then I along with other Members on all sides of the Chamber will be delighted as we go through the consultation process to have such an offer. This is an incredibly interesting offer.
I was listening to what you were saying about moving groups extremely carefully and can you reassure us that the groups will feel no pressure to go to the new Weybridge Centre and that they are aware that no decision has been taken about the Weybridge Hall and that they are therefore perfectly entitled to continue as they are at present in the Weybridge Hall?
The discussions with all the users, I hope, will prove to be to everybody’s satisfaction. I can’t give absolute assurances that the status quo will be maintained. That would be dishonest to say that, but I am very hopeful that through the discussions that the Community Support Services Officers are having, and with the attractions of the Thames Ditton model being brought to Weybridge as a community centre; and I take the point that I shouldn’t have used the word ‘new’, those discussions will take place. But can I guarantee that everyone will have a veto? No, I can’t and it would be irresponsible for anyone to say that.
Could you confirm whether or not notice has been served and also if and when, what period of notice will be served, and at what stage will the existing tenants meet with the officers regarding relocation?
The answer is no notice has been served. We have asked in the letter that the Head of Community Support Services has sent together with a questionnaire, to have a response by 4 March 2011 and then discussions will take place with the users. We’ve not put a deadline or a notice to quit. We are hoping that this process will be entirely benign and that most, if not all, will feel very comfortable and will get an improved service by moving to the Weybridge Centre. No notice has been given on this issue.
We covered the last time we considered this that there are some significant differences between the facilities at the Hall and Centre. Weybridge Day Centre, however much it has spent on it, does not have a High Street location or a large space with a solid hall, so can the Leader tell us a little more about how he anticipates Weybridge Centre being transformed into a facility that can accommodate the sort of needs that are currently met by Weybridge Hall, and can he tell us how many hirers of Weybridge Hall he anticipates will make that move?
It would be presumptuous of me at this stage to predict. That’s a serious and, I hope amicable discussion that the current users of the hall will have with Mrs. Bussicott and her team over the next few weeks and it would be ludicrous to prejudge what the outcome of that will be. What I can say, and it is our strong hope and expectation, that with the extension of the conservatory that we are proposing, as I say £70,000, which I’m sure Councillors Macleod and Crowther welcome without reservation, it will increase the capacity of Weybridge Centre to not only accommodate most of the hirers of Weybridge Hall which currently have their activities in Weybridge Hall, but other users who would like to come into the Centre. So it’s a real opportunity for Weybridge Centre to blossom. I think I said in December, that I was on the Council in the 1990’s when Weybridge Centre was under really serious threat of closure, but its prospects are potentially really, really transformed by this move. As for the future of Weybridge Hall, I can only repeat, that the future of Weybridge Hall will only be decided after the most extensive public consultation.
May I ask the Leader, being a neighbour to Weybridge Centre, when the close neighbours to the Centre will be consulted on the extension?
That’s more of an operational matter. I don’t have a specific answer to the neighbours to the Centre being consulted on the conservatory. My understanding is that it does not require planning permission, but I’m sure as a matter of good neighbourliness, the centre management and / or Mrs. Bussicott and her team will no doubt wish to talk to neighbours.
Would the Leader be in agreement with the principle, having heard the news from
Mr. Clifford, and I appreciate the fact that Councillor Sadler has indeed brought this to the Chamber’s attention, that we should make strides to inform Mr. Clifford of the true facts with the Weybridge Hall, and indeed what the proposed movements of the current hirers is versus those of the future of the Hall, given the fact that there has been such misinformation shed wantonly by former Members of this Council, which I personally believe to be an absolute disgrace and bring this Council into disrepute.
I thank my colleague for that and he speaks with the authority as a Weybridge Councillor as does Councillor Dearlove, and I share Councillor Dodsworth’s dismay at the way that it might be regarded as deliberate misrepresentation, and I think that does not do the person who is saying it or the Authority as a whole, any credit. Why? Because it sends an unnecessary alarm amongst the community, which Weybridge Councillors are privileged to represent, so I do share Councillor Dodsworth’s concern. On his first point about Max Clifford, I would urge Mr. Clifford to work with the local community to see whether jointly, they can put a proposal that will sustain the future of Weybridge Hall. I’m sure Mr. Clifford was not doing this as a publicity stunt and that he really is willing to put forward his money and work with the local community to ensure the future of the Weybridge Hall.
You say you’re going to consult with the public and I quote your words ‘The fate of Weybridge Hall will only be decided after extensive public consultation’. What does concern me is that if you’ve allocated £70,000 to do up the Day Centre, it almost sounds like the outcome has been predetermined. Have you had any negative feedback from the current tenants?
It’s not a presumption on my part; again it would be wholly inappropriate for me to somehow dictate to the 14 users that they must use the community Centre. There may be other options in the locality if they don’t find the community Centre satisfies their requirements. I wouldn’t want to be seen to presume and to lecture the current users as to where they should be located to in future. There have been discussions with officers with one particular Group. I have not received any direct feedback from current users of the Hall that they are dissatisfied, but that’s not to say that no doubt one or two may be. That’s democracy and as much as we can in the weeks ahead, through discussion, we will see if an outcome can be reached that satisfies the Council and satisfies the users, but as I said earlier, I cannot say they will have a veto. No one could contemplate an absolute veto on this proposal, as far as moving to the Centre is concerned; but as far as the future of the Hall is concerned, no decision will be taken on the future of Weybridge Hall until there has been extensive public consultation.
I wonder where this £70,000 has come from? The budget is going to be quite stringent and all of a sudden the Leader brings out £70,000, where does he get it from? Might the £70,000 be divided and given to update the Hall as well as the Weybridge Centre. Why couldn’t it be split ?