Decision on future of children’s centres delayed by council

Campaigners awaiting a decision over the future of children’s centres facing closure will have to wait an extra month for the result.

Suffolk County Council had planned to reveal the results of a public consultation, before making a decision over the proposals at its December cabinet meeting.

The county council has, however, delayed the discussion until its meeting on January 27.

A council spokesman said councillors had requested more time to look into all possible options for the centres throughout the county.

Both Brett Rivers Centre in Hadleigh and the Woodlands Centre in Glemsford face closure after the council proposed merging the services with centres in East Bergholt and Sudbury respectively.

Labour Parliamentary candidate Jane Basham, who has been campaigning on behalf of parents who rely on the service, had organised a protest outside the county council building in Ipswich.

“It would be nice to think that the council is seriously taking into account the number of responses it has had from the consultation,” she said.

“We’ll still keep the pressure on and encourage people to contact members of the cabinet who will be making the decision.”

The protest will be rescheduled for January.