A partial victory is being claimed by County Councillor Barry Lewis in the battle to save Millmead Family Hub.
A recommendation has been made for Kent County Council to axe its commissioning of services at Millmead Family Hub from the end of March next year when the contract runs out.
A meeting was held yesterday {November 21} for County Councillors to discuss cutting the £222,127 contract with Millmead’s hub and a further £204,302 to a hub in Sheerness from the end of next March in a bid to save £426,429 per year.
Cllr Sue Chandler, Cabinet Member for Integrated Children’s Services, told members that following consultation on the funding withdrawal- which ran from July 29 until 22 September- a sixth option had been added for consideration.
This suggested not renewing the two commissioned contracts, but instead hiring space for KCC Family Hub staff to deliver the services from within the two settings.
However, she added that ending the contracts and providing services at KCC owned hubs was still the preferred option.
The aim is for families to use Margate Family Hub (formerly Six Bells), Northdown Road Family Hub (formerly known as Quarterdeck) and Cliftonville Family Hub (formerly Children’s Centre) to access KCC funded services.
But many questions were raised about how sensible the Millmead proposal was and why figures for usage of the other three hubs in Margate and Cliftonville – provided a KCC officer – had not been included in the report.
Cllr Barry Lewis, who represents Margate, said: “The proof of the pudding is in the figures – {which} are not in the report.
“ In the last six months each SureStart centre was open for 130 days, five days a week.
“Millmead had 719 customers, Northdown Road had 100, Margate Six Bells 99 and Cliftonville 46.
“Out of 130 days at Cliftonville, two-thirds of the days nobody came in but they are going to stay open.
“75% of people using family hubs in Margate used Millmead, 10% Northdown,10% Six Bells and 5% Cliftonville yet {you will} keep open Cliftonville and close Millmead. When I say close, you say it will not but have a report from the people at Millmead saying it will close.”
Cllr Lewis also questioned the £225,000 savings – revealing Millmead had asked for a reduced amount of £165,000 to run the commissioned services going forward.
He also highlighted that KCC, in its report, had pledged to cover £4 bus fares for families to travel to the other centres. He said: “Given the figures that’s £4,000-£5000 per year plus admin costs, so up to £10,000.”
He then queried the cost of putting at least one additional staff member in the three KCC hubs to cope with the extra demand saying: “One extra staff member in each of the three buildings, £120,000 {£40,000 times three} so your £225k saving is disappearing fast. That’s why your figures are completely illusionary.”
Cllr Lewis said the three KCC hubs were all in close proximity to each other while Millmead is owned by Thanet council, meaning closure would not result in a sale of that site putting money in KCC coffers.
He said: “If you merge the three Margate centres you will then be able to sell the assets, two or one of the buildings which are worth probably £750k – the Six Bells is at the bottom of the High Street and very desirable.
“If you were running a business, why would you close the most used property?”
Broadstairs county councillor Ros Binks also questioned the merits of the plan in light of the figures quoted, adding: “Millmead is clearly more attractive to families, it’s not guaranteed they would go somewhere else.”
She highlighted that the report said Millmead was not staffed by KCC and did not have strong links to the KCC network but added: “So what?” noting that it was an efficient service nonetheless.
She voiced a preference for option 6 and noted the reduced asking cost from Millmead already meant a £65k saving.
The government pledge in the recent budget to provide more funds for family hub services was also raised.
Cllr Lewis put forward a recommendation that: “We delay the decision until the new government funding is finalised and valuation of the buildings mentioned is made and an update to be given at the next children and young people and education meeting.”
Cllr Chandler said this may not be legally possible because of contractual processes and a timetable that needed to be followed resulting in a proviso added to the motion that it would be subject to it being legally viable to delay the decision.
There was a unanimous vote in favour of Cllr Lewis’s recommendation.
However, at the beginning of the session Cllr Chandler reminded members it was not “a decision making meeting” but had “a really important role in the democratic process towards the decision.”
Following the meeting Cllr Lewis, who had been battling deselection by the Labour Party, announced his departure from the party and new status as an Independent councillor.
He said he was “delighted” that all 12 members of the committee, including Conservatives, had voted for his recommendation.
Congratulations on leaving Labour after nearly 50 years of being a member. Must have been hard, but it no longer has socialist values & aside from a very tiny number of suspended MP’s, is only interested in rewarding the rich people giving them money in return for contracts/favours at the expense of the poorest, filling their pockets & becoming more & more dystopian as they get ever drunker on power.
Once again with this story. As new figures are quoted it raises more questions than answers.
Can the contracted Family Hub services realistically be provided at Millmead safely at the reduced cost of £165,000?
If so. As this is a considerably lower amount (more than 25% lower) than the current contract cost, does the procedure by KCC for awarding the current contract and any previous contracts need investigating?
Why was this potential price cut only “revealed” at this meeting?
Why was it not highlighted months ago, prior to the consultation when the possibility of not renewing the contract was first mentioned?
It clearly would have put a completely different perspective on the whole dicision concerning the amount of savings that could be made.
To me this is more political than financial. A Tory council shutting down a Labour started Sure Start building. They have shut most of the others over the years and now it’s Milmeads time. I support Barry and his efforts in this as Milmead has been excellent most of its years of being open. It serves Milmead and Dane Valley very well. We all know in this day and age it should not be needed but it is. We are a wealthy country and still can’t support the less well off in any decent manor. Labour is no better than the Tories now so the poor can go and stay poor with little help.
How shocking that Cllr. Lewis has been replaced as Labour candidate for the May elections, even though he seems to be a vocal and active campaigner on behalf of Margate residents.