‘The risks to the public were just too great’
CALDERDALE Council says it has taken “significant” steps to improve safety and security at the Threeways Centre in Ovenden, Halifax, since taking the building back under its control last week.
Shock gripped users of the centre when the building, used by many community groups as well as individuals, was boarded up by security staff in a manner which the Centre at Threeways charity running it described as “aggressive and unwarranted”.
The council claimed it had no alternative, and says it has since been working closely with tenants and users to ensure services and activities are continued wherever possible.
It is still considering the sports centre’s options for the future.
Calderdale says it has also provided support to help staff find alternative employment.
The authority has contacted all tenants within the centre, including social enterprises, small businesses, a church foodbank and a GP surgery, and the vast majority of activities continue to operate on site as normal, said a spokesman this week.
Meanwhile the council says the building and grounds have been secured, while further checks and assessments by the council’s
Building Regulations and Health and Safety teams continue.
Cabinet voted to enable the buildings to be taken back last summer but the decision has only been enacted now, with Centre at Threeways making a case for being allowed to continue running the sports centre part.
The charity, which faces insolvency as a result of the council taking back the centre, are still trying to seek answers and strongly disagree with the council’s reading and handling of the situation.
The building, previously the Ridings School, was one of the most ambitious and largest transfers of a council building to a community organisation ever completed in England.
Calderdale says that challenges particularly in meeting the health and safety standards required in a public building, were always hard and even when the centre was managed by Threeways, the council retained the legal responsibility to ensure the building was safe for users.
This means ensuring it was compliant with statutory regulations relating to fire safety, asbestos, electricity, gas and also water hygiene, it said.
The council’s Director for Regeneration and Strategy, Mark Thompson said: “Unfortunately the scale of the challenge was too difficult, and the risks to the public were too great.
“The council was forced to take the difficult decision to bring the lease to an end, to protect tenants, staff and visitors to the building.
“We are now assessing what additional work is required to make the building safe and to secure a financially sustainable future for the centre.”
In a statement issued following the closure, Vice-Chair Colin Davies, on behalf of the board of Centre at Threeways, said there was no doubt the Threeways journey had been challenging given the scale of the project and the inherited condition of the building itself.
“However, the charity despite its financial challenges has made significant improvements to sections of the premises through grants and social finance and has delivered significant social benefit to the local community through the dedicated work of its volunteer Board of Trustees, a small staff team and the tremendous support of community volunteers all of whom share our love for our community and commitment to change.
“Throughout the past few months we have attempted to convey to council officers and members our position in not being able to surrender the lease back to the council.
“There have been clear reasons backed by legal precedent why this has not been possible despite our willingness to work with the council.
“While the potential of the continuation of the charity beyond the life of the lease was at least a possibility discussed by both parties, trustees could not see a way of surrendering the lease without having to immediately declare insolvency as the lease provided income for the charity including a tenancies with NHS Property Trust and Calderdale Council themselves,” he said.