Can any body help. Glamis day care centre to close

[craftsncards]

Hi Everyone

We are trying to stop Wellingborough council from closing Glamis hall at the end of this year. anyone here been able to stop council from closing places down. we have petitions going. Can anyone think of anything else we can do to stop this. 100`s O.A.P go everyday to this centre its the best. plus it has evenings for kids as well as bingo that's in another hall.
anyone got any ideas
please help
thank you
sarah

[damian_steele]

Some points to consider:

What reasons are they giving for closing it?
Who funds it? Where does the funding come from? What changed?
Is there another facility in the area that could replace this one?
Did the council simply announce the decision or was there some public consultation? If not, should there have been?
Which councilor/s are for or against the closure? Have you spoken to them? Will they appear on camera?
Are the local media on-board with the campaign to save it? If not, why not?
Do you have a single person to champion the cause? - someone the media can focus on as a figurehead.
Are the community aware? Is the issue being kept alive and in their minds?
Can your local MP help?

[craftsncards]

Hi
Wellingborough council fund it. they said the repair costs is too much. The repairs are heating and fire safety. as far as we where told they would find either a better places, looking for someone to buy it or repair it if they can get the funding. then out of the blue last Thursday told in a letter it will be closing December. no meetings, letters. nothing
our MP is Peter bone ?? cant be bother far to busy?
thank you for all the questions didn't think of some of them. I will look into it
thank you
sarah

[damian_steele]

How much is it?
Could you raise that much?
Would the council cover part of the costs if you could raise the rest?

[emmily121]

I wasn't surprised when I looked up Peter Bone to find he is a conservative MP. The Tories want to close or off load council owned village halls, I assume that is what Glamis is, or very similar.
The village hall I'm caretaker, booking secretary and manager of was threatened with closure or sell off a couple of years ago under Tories, we had local election Labour won, no more talk of closure or sell off (though cut backs on repairs). Every time we have local elections, the village hall I manage is used as a polling station, I'm fully aware that if the Tories get back in that's my job, my income gone...
Good luck, I hope you can save your hall, it may show us in the future what works when other halls are threatened with closure.
Before my time, my hall was used for emergency accommodation for Bosnian refugees. It might be worth checking the law and council responsibilities regarding having a building available for such circumstances.

[JDStamps]

Hi Sarah,
You could ask Wellingborough Homes for some support- a lot of their residents use Glamis, and I'm sure a lot of relatives would add their support too. They have access to all sorts of tradesmen, and in my time as a Warden (not that long ago) were always looking for Community based projects. A visit to their offices next to Morrison's may prove worthwhile.

Good luck!
John

[squern]

Hi
Wellingborough council fund it. they said the repair costs is too much. The repairs are heating and fire safety. as far as we where told they would find either a better places, looking for someone to buy it or repair it if they can get the funding. then out of the blue last Thursday told in a letter it will be closing December. no meetings, letters. nothing
our MP is Peter bone ?? cant be bother far to busy?
thank you for all the questions didn't think of some of them. I will look into it
thank you
sarah

A good way to get action from an MP is to embarrass them.
Try writing to your local paper, mentioning that the MP doesn't seem interested in local issues.
Try contacting the constituency office. Ask them who you should contact for help, as your MP isn't interested.

Contact the prospective Labour/Liberal/UKIP candidates for the 2015 elections. Ask them if they are willing to support you, as your MP won't.
Try tour local radio station - ask if you can appear on it and state your case.

Shame is a very powerful weapon. I guarantee you will get a reaction.

[suesjools]

A good way to get action from an MP is to embarrass them.
Try writing to your local paper, mentioning that the MP doesn't seem interested in local issues.
Try contacting the constituency office. Ask them who you should contact for help, as your MP isn't interested.

Contact the prospective Labour/Liberal/UKIP candidates for the 2015 elections. Ask them if they are willing to support you, as your MP won't.
Try tour local radio station - ask if you can appear on it and state your case.

Shame is a very powerful weapon. I guarantee you will get a reaction.

So true. The media can be a very powerful tool if you can get local and maybe even national media on your side. A humanitarian angle to a story can be a huge plus, you might want to contact your local newspaper/radio station, or maybe have someone write to the papers or call MPs as suggested. Local reps over here aren't always interested in important issues without being pressed on by the public, sounds like it's a global problem, ugh.

One other thought: over here sites/buildings with historic or age significance can get on the national register of historic places which disallows any changes to the structure. A home in my Dad's neck of the woods was saved from destruction for being a historic landmark a few years back. If you have a similar register, you might want to check with those in the know at the register office, especially if the building or building site has historic significance.

Good luck and best wishes for many sales to all,

[Gill]

I know my reply doesn't stop the council from closing the centre down but looking at Google maps my guess is they will sell the site for £thousands and builders will then apply for planning permission to erect more housing on the green fields surrounding the centre. More green fields being dug up for more homes? Ask the council what they intend to do with the site once the centre is closed. How many residents in the area would be happy with the green fields being used for more housing?

[craftsncards]

hi everyone
thank you all for your reply's. they say that they will build flats? other than that they are not saying anything. how ever they are holding 2 meetings at the centre for the day care and then 1 in the evening for everybody else that use it. I will be doing some digging around and once the meetings are done then I will hit them with the media.
will keep you posted
sarah