The leaders of Ashford Common Baptist Church have two main reasons for wanting to take their first step into youth centre management. First, they want to prevent the building that houses their Sunday worship from being sold off to developers. And second, part of their church's ethos is helping the community.
Martin Taylor, one of the church's four leaders, says: "When we talked to the community, one of the particular things it was interested in was not having children roaming the streets causing trouble. The community has expressed a need for youth activities, although exactly how the church can fulfil that remains to be seen," he adds. "But if we were able to manage the centre and continue existing services, that would benefit the community."
Sharing access
The church is one of several organisations taking advantage of Surrey County Council's invitation to community groups to take on the management of 18 youth centres at risk of closure.
The terms and conditions have caused friction with some, particularly the requirement that the council has the first say on bookings to deliver its own services. This was the sticking point for WISE Communities, a charity founded by astrologer Russell Grant (YPN, 24-30 January, p4).
But Taylor is hopeful the church can strike a deal for the Sunbury centre.
"We think the council wants a reasonable say in the use of its buildings and, fair enough, it's the council's property," he says. "But we need a form of words that doesn't imply that an existing user can be thrown out at a moment's notice."
Alongside regular sessions run by the county's youth development service, the Sunbury centre also houses activities such as a Saturday dance class for young people. Taylor and his co-leaders plan to consult the community to establish what other youth activities may be needed.
Taylor says: "If it was clear that there was a requirement for a drop-in centre for young people, then we'd have to ask: can we cover that with volunteers from our church? And we'd have to check the appropriateness of that."
Ashford is another of Surrey's youth centres that could soon find itself under church management, this time by Ashford Baptist Church (distinct from the Common Baptish Church). The extra space could be useful for the church, which already runs two Tuesday night youth groups, with help from church volunteers.
But minister Rev Graham Coldman says co-habitation with youth services will have to be carefully thought through: "As a church, we certainly don't want to detract from what the youth service wants to achieve. But at the same time, we want to do our own youth work."
Surrey County Council has many issues to thrash out as it negotiates with groups in the run up to 1 April, when it begins its system of community youth centre management. The scheme will mean a local organisation taking on a centre for a maximum initial period of two years. It will be charged a peppercorn rent and be expected to meet the running costs, although the council will remain responsible for structural repairs. The organisation will be able to charge rent to those using the centre including the youth development service, which will continue to use it for two or three sessions a week.
Andrew Crisp, Surrey's executive member for schools, children and community services, says that while these arrangements will initially only apply to the 18 youth centres at risk of closure - one third of all its centres - the council would consider extending community management to the rest of them.
"This is a large county, and local voluntary organisations are often more in touch and better able to respond in a flexible way to what people want," he says.
"I can't pretend that one of the drivers was not a financial one. We're keen to have maximum provision for young people, but aren't able to do that on our own."
Crisp says the council's objective is not to get rid of responsibility for the centres but to maintain and even expand the county's youth provision.
"Our main concern is that whatever community groups are proposing is sustainable."
Crisp says he would appreciate guidance from the Government on the legal framework for community management of centres serving children and young people, to clarify responsibilities.
Helping communities
Pam Griffin, head of Oldham Youth Service and chair of the Association of Principal Youth and Community Officers, says her main concern about councils following Surrey's example would be that youth workers still receive training.
Griffin is keen to revive a system of community management for the youth and community sector that was once standard practice in Bradford and Leeds.
"It enables the community to be involved and make decisions without the fear of liability, or worrying about lack of knowledge," says Griffin.
Making the process of community "asset management" easier was among the principles of the local government white paper, now enshrined in the local government and public involvement in health bill, currently before Parliament.
An implementation plan for the proposals was published last week.
GOVERNMENT PLANS
- The Government is publishing a report outlining the barriers faced in transferring responsibility for centres from local authorities to community groups and how they can be overcome
- Lead author Barry Quirk, chief executive of Lewisham Borough Council, will send it to communities secretary Ruth Kelly by the end of February, for publication by the end of March
- An action plan will follow in May
- The Government is also making 30m available to make it easier for community groups to take on the ownership or management of buildings.
