Wanstead Youth Centre

Redbridge Council is considering the future use of Wanstead Youth Centre.

The building is old and requires a large amount of work to improve its condition, it is not fit for purpose and could become unsafe without significant investment. To renovate the building to a good standard would cost the Council upwards of £2.4m and take 18-24 months, during which time the building would need to be closed to the public.

Since 2010 Redbridge Council has lost 63% of Government grant settlement funding and so must invest its remaining funding wisely and prudently. The Council currently subsidises the cost of private organisations renting Wanstead Youth Centre, at a cost of £86,000 every year. This saving could be used to fund key services for local residents.

The Council is considering alternatives to renovating the building, including redevelopment. We would expect any redevelopment of the site to include community space as a precondition of planning permission being granted.

We are proposing to close the centre for hire by May 2023 with Kids In Charge remaining on site until September 2023.

We will be consulting on this proposal from 30 January to 13 March 2023 before reporting to the Cabinet for a decision. You can find a link to the consultation survey below.

Redbridge Council and our leisure partner Vision value the provision of local sports and activity sessions across the borough and so, where possible, we will support building users to find alternative sites. There are several alternative hireable spaces available in the local area.

Subject to the Cabinet decision following consultation, we expect that private organisations who currently hire the space will need to find alternative premises by May 2023.

Kids in Charge have separate access to the building and do not require management or support from the Council’s leisure partner Vision, and so it is expected that they will continue to use the site until the end of the school year.

Building Condition Report summary

Redbridge Council commissioned a building condition report which concluded that to bring the building up to a good standard would cost in excess of £2.4 million.

The £2.4 million estimate covers a range of items including:

• Repair and replacement of boilers, radiators, and air conditioning plant
• Repair and replacement of roofs
• Metal cladding to the sports hall
• Window repairs
• Shower and toilet refurbishment
• Professional fees and contingencies

If you need any help completing the survey, or require the survey in another language, please contact Damian Atkinson at damian.atkinson@redbridge.gov.uk.

Please continue to monitor the FAQs for regular updates.