Crunch time for future of Guilsfield Community Centre
A consultation which includes an online public meeting is taking place to discuss the future of Guilsfield Community Centre and its playing fields.
The centre, joined onto Guilsfield Primary School, is owned by Powys County Council but leased to the Community Centre Trustees.
But, wrangling over decisions made in the past, including questions over land ownership, saw the community centre face closure three years ago, before new Trustees were set up to resolve the issues and Guilsfield Community Council (GCC) stepped in to oversee the playing fields and ensure the bills were paid.
Since then, a working group from the Trustees has liaised closely with the Charity Commission to iron out the past problems and identify a roadmap forward, but they are now calling on the public to be a part of the decision making process moving forward.
Part of the work has involved determining the legal standing of who actually owns land that was bought on behalf of the community centre.
At the GCC November meeting, vice-chairman Cllr Glynne Turner, who has effectively been managing the centre’s playing fields since 2018, said that he would be pulling back at the end of March and that the community council would no longer be responsible.
Moving forward, one of the ideas mooted is to set up a community amateur sports association involving clubs that use the facilities.
Secretary of the Trustees, Malcolm Graham, said: “After much behind the scenes activity involving lawyers and the Charity Commission, we are now in a position to hold a public consultation with all the stakeholders and the whole community with the real prospect of a sound and legal solution to the knot of problems.”
The consultation started on Thursday, January 14 and will run until Sunday, February 14, and a public meeting will take place on Zoom at 8pm on Monday, February 1.
The community centre was also brought up at a meeting of Guilsfield Community Council on last night.
Cllr Trevor Trevor, who is also a Trustee, said that Trustees had decided that the only way forward was to have the Charity Commission extend their powers to include being able to manage the centre lands.
Cllr Trevor, said: “Any other actions like purchasing and leasing lands was outside our powers which caused the present problems. Extending the powers means that the land can be taken back in hand.
“The consultation document has been sent out to every organisation that uses the land and every one listed on the original 1996 lease as being a user of the community centre.”
He added that it was proposed that two sub committees would be set up. They would have trustees and representative of clubs on them, one would run the centre and the other the outside land.
Cllr Turner, said: “I think most people who know the historic circumstances, recognise that this is the way forward, and maybe the mess may be all sorted out.”
The consultation can be found by visiting https://www.guilsfieldcentre.co.uk/public-consultation and to get a link for the Zoom meeting email malcolm@bioagri.biz
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