Cllr John Burden responds to suggestions that Kent County Council is to close the Adult Education Centre at the Victoria Centre in Gravesend.
The Leader of Gravesham Borough council, Cllr John Burden, has written a strongly worded letter to his counterpart at Kent County Council, expressing his anger and disappointment at suggestions that KCC is to close the Adult Education Centre at the Victoria Centre.
In his letter to Cllr Roger Gough, Cllr Burden questions the legality of the decision-making process, criticises the lack of consultation with both Gravesham council and local people, and sets out stark demographic statistics which he insists should lead to a re-think.
It follows earlier correspondence between Cllr Burden and Cllr Rory Love, KCC’s Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, in which Cllr Love appeared to confirm a decision to close the Victoria Centre had already been made.
In his letter, Cllr Burden writes: “I want to be clear that I . . . question the legal basis for this decision. The minutes for the meeting where this item was considered are yet to be published, so I am unable to understand the discussion leading to the decision and whether the requisite public notifications were made that such a decision would be considered in a private part of the meeting.
“I also question the practice of simply accepting the Department for Education’s opinion that the Equality Impact Assessment shows limited impacts, even when the Equality Impact Assessment appended to the report shows negative impacts on multiple groups.
“I see no evidence of consultation in relation to this decision, which Cllr Love makes clear has already been made, so surely any forthcoming consultation would be a meaningless exercise, and therefore a clear breach of the regulations.
“This seems to me to be yet another decision made by Kent County Council without taking into account the impact it will have on our community. As the Upper Tier authority with responsibility for public health and education, I am at an absolute loss as to how you can be comfortable with the erosion of such an important provision.”
Cllr Burden adds that while Cllr Love had stated there is current dialogue seeking to secure suitable alternative premises in Gravesend and KCC was seeking Gravesham’s support in that, there had been no dialogue, even out of courtesy, with Gravesham.
He went on to note Cllr Love stated KCC was looking for community venues within Northfleet, where there are identified skills needs – clearly noting the need for this essential offer.
He wrote: “For the avoidance of doubt, increased skills provision by KCC within Northfleet is something I and my colleagues would value, given the wards of Northfleet rank within the 10% most deprived in the country, but this should not - and cannot - be at the expense of provision within Gravesend as there are equally disadvantaged wards within Gravesend served by the Victoria Centre.”
The letter outlines some of the challenges faced in Gravesham, including:
- It is the fifth most deprived local authority in Kent, and 119th nationally, with deprivation concentrated in neighbourhoods in the north of the borough;
- Pockets of Northfleet and Westcourt are within the top10% most deprived in England;
- 21.2% of residents (1 in 5) have no qualifications with below average figures for residents with skills and qualifications at Level 3 (and above); and only 26.7% Level 4 & above, the third worst in Kent behind Swale at 23.7% & Thanet at 26.3%;
- There is a significantly lower proportion of employees in professional occupations at 14.5%; compared to Kent (23.1%), Thames Estuary (27%), South East (28.1%), England (26.4%);
- Over 2,600 households within Gravesham have no occupants with English as their main language. This equates to 6.4% of all households, the highest proportion of all Kent districts and ahead of the national position (4.8%) and an increase of 5% since the 2011 Census.
In his letter, Cllr Burden writes: “The Victoria Centre is centrally placed within Gravesend, making it accessible for those who cannot rely on car travel, for example, but is within walking distance for those living in some of the most deprived wards.
“Closing the physical site would lead to an erosion of provision of adult skills facilities within the Borough and exacerbate the situation within Gravesham. This view remains, even if there was a proposal to move to an outreach or virtual delivery model.
“I am also aware that the Kent Training Apprenticeship deliver their service from this building; so, closing this facility will further exacerbate the impact of skills provision for our community.”
Cllr Burden concludes: “To close an Adult Education Centre in one of the most challenged parts of the county makes no sense, is a poorly thought-through and irrational approach, and will simply put insurmountable barriers in the paths of those within our community who would seek to better their prospects.
“It has the distinct flavour of being a decision taken with the cost of everything and the value of nothing at its heart; a decision driven by the costs of maintaining the premises rather than consideration of the benefits to a local community that so desperately needs the services delivered from those premises.
“Based on previous decisions taken by Kent County Council, I have absolutely no confidence that a community-based education and skills offer in Gravesham would do anything other than dilute the provision that the Victoria Centre currently offers our residents, and I implore you to reconsider the decision that you appear to have taken to close the premises.”