Five children's centres close as part of cost-cutting at Cheshire West and Chester Council

Cash-strapped Cheshire West and Chester Council is closing five children’s centres where 2,800 youngsters are registered.

The centres include Cherry Grove, Boughton, the Tarvin-based centre serving the rural area, including Malpas and Farndon, and the Woodlands centre in Ellesmere Port.

Centres at Hartford near Northwich and Over near Winsford will also close.

The centres, which were the brainchild of the last Labour government, support families with health facilities, child care and early learning and parenting advice in every community.

But Tory-run CWaC needs to save £162,000 per year so will instead refocus services on those communities in greatest need.

This flies in the face of a council consultation which showed 63% respondents disagree with closing centres.

CWaC says a range of community and educational organisations are keen to take over the five smaller children’s centres recommended for de-registration.

Currently, the borough’s 15 other children’s centres provide a base for the authority’s Early Integrated Support Service which will continue to be accessible for communities affected by the closures.

Working with babies to 19-year-olds and their families – and up to 25-year-olds for people with special needs – the ground-breaking centres have ‘significantly reduced’ referrals to social services.

But in his report, Gerald Meehan, strategic director, children and families, says that former national policy to provide a children’s centre in every community has resulted in some smaller buildings now struggling to accommodate multi-agency working in line with the new service model.

He added: “Dedicated funding for children’s centres through the Early Intervention Grant ceased in 2009 so it is important that we are able to focus reduced resources on ensuring we are meeting the needs of our most vulnerable families in areas of greatest disadvantage.”

Clllr Mark Stocks, executive member, children and families, said: “In the current economic climate it is vital that we make maximum use of those buildings and facilities which are currently well used by families and serve areas where they are needed most.”

Labour opposition leader Cllr Samantha Dixon asked the executive for assurances existing services would be maintained and that future use of the deregistered buildings would represent good value to council tax payers.