Teenagers save youth clubs from Rotherham Council axe

Rotherham Borough Council has agreed to keep open half the centres which had been earmarked for closure under an announcement made last March.

Parish councillors will take over Bramley’s Bill Chafer Centre—to the delight of youngsters who petitioned, lobbied MPs and staged a sit-in protest.

Fourteen-year-old Kimberley Holbrook, of Flanderwell, said: “It was quite amazing news. We’d done all this work, done everything we could and in the end we won.”

Elsewhere, the Kimberworth Community Partnership has stepped in to save the Chislett Centre’s rescue.

What do you think? Post your comment below.

Brampton Cabins will stay open thanks to the Cortonwood Miners’ Social Club and Wingfield School will now continue its centre, with sports in the evenings.

Dinnington’s Salvation Army will provide two-nights’ interim activities until a new base is found and discussions continue with Harthill Parish Council.

Interviews with youth workers were continuing this week as the council looks to sheds the equivalent of 29 full-time positions.

But the partnerships have allowed the borough council to keep open the centres while cutting £30 million from this year’s budget.