Kids Company: Bristol venue to close next week

Bristol City Council commissioned Creative Youth Network to keep Kids Company drop-in centre The Island open after the charity closed on 5 August in order to provide a “managed closure”.

The local authority has now said the centre, which had a total of 213 children and young people on its books, will close on Friday 4 September.

Plans are currently being put in place to provide ongoing “appropriate support” for children and young people who visited the venue.

The council said that, ahead of the final closure, the venue will no longer be providing open access as the focus moves to one-to-one support where necessary.

“During the managed closure, the main focus has been on assessing the needs of young people which Kids Company reported as having complex needs,” a statement from the council said.

“They are in the process of being assessed and offered the opportunity of alternative support from a range of agencies and charities.

“All young people aged under 18 will have a named lead professional and all over-18s will have a lead agency or organisation able to provide support if they wish to access it.”

George Ferguson, mayor of Bristol said: “The sad closure of Kids Company left many questions unanswered, but now we are seeing a much clearer picture.

“Over the past few weeks many dedicated professionals have spent their time working with young people and thoroughly checking Kids Company records to make sure that appropriate support will continue to be available in Bristol to those who need it.”

At the time of its closure, Kids Company provided a service on behalf of Bristol City Council educating 40 pupils who could not attend mainstream school for a variety of reasons from three locations, which was already due to end this month when the contract ceased.  The council said there will be no lapse in service for any pupil.

Last week the Charity Commission announced that it has launched an official investigation into the closure of Kids Company.

The regulator said it has opened a statutory inquiry into Kids Company in order to address concerns about the “administration, governance and financial management of the charity, and identify wider lessons for other charities and trustees”.