I recently stopped by Thames Ditton Community Centre to meet with Boomerang Bags and Men in Sheds based at the centre. It was great to see so many people coming together and hear how much these community groups mean to local people.
Following Elmbridge Borough Council’s decision to hand over the management of Thames Ditton Centre for the Community to a private company, despite a petition signed by over 1,000 local residents calling for Elmbridge Borough Council to continue managing the centre, many of the user groups are understandably concerned about their future at the Centre.
I have written to the Leader of the Council asking for details of the proposed key performance indicators for the management company and how these will be rigorously monitored to enable hirers of the Centre to hold the company to account. I have also sought reassurances that the management board will work in the best interest of community groups to provide long-term certainty that user groups won’t be priced out the Centre. You can read my letter below.
