Funding cash row (From News Shopper)

Funding cash row

12:48pm Tuesday 17th May 2005 in

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A COMMUNITY action group says its views on the regeneration of Lewisham town centre "are not being taken seriously enough".

Voluntary Action Lewisham (VAL) is a registered charity which supports more than 600 voluntary and community organisations in the borough.

VAL says people in the area were not given a big enough say in how £600,000 for community facilities in the redeveloped town centre is being spent.

The multi-million pound development is being overseen by Urban Renaissance in Lewisham (URL), a partnership between Lewisham Council and the private sector.

URL set up a community forum and set-aside £600,000 for a community asset to meet the needs of groups in the area.

This money is set to be ploughed into the Leemore Centre, Clarendon Rise, Lewisham, a council-owned day centre for disabled people.

But VAL director Martin Howie says he would like to see the money put in the hands of a community group rather than pumped straight into a council-run scheme.

He also believes the community forum is not succeeding in engaging the public.

He said: "The way this was all decided was not sufficiently open or transparent and there was not sufficient consultation with community groups.

"We feel the views we expressed were not taken seriously enough."

Assistant director Matthew Scott says the URL's community forum "has no clear structures of accountability, such as regular and open meetings".

He said: "This brings into question the ability of URL's board to make decisions which reflect the real needs of the community."

VAL says it is now hoping to encourage more community involvement in town centre planning.

URL chairman and deputy mayor Councillor Gavin Moore said the Leemore Centre was emerging as "the only practical option" for a community asset.

He added: "Further consultation will be undertaken with current and potential users of the building and detailed feasibility studies will have to be undertaken before money is allocated."