Livingston South SNP

01/10/2025

Edition 103

18/09/2025

WITH community centre management committees now queueing up to reject West Lothian Council's options for their future running, a councillor is calling for decisions to be made by the full council and not just those who sit on the Executive Committee.
Councillor Pauline Stafford has submitted a Notice of Motion to next week's full meeting of West Lothian Council. Her Motion requests that any decisions and reports relating to West Lothian’s community centres are taken to full council for approval.
And Councillor Stafford has written to community centre management committees, asking them to support her Motion.
She said: "We are working to find consensus with other parties and independent councillors on a sustainable future for our community centres.
"The deadline for management committees to respond to the council’s options set out in their consultation on new community centre operating models has passed. We are aware that many committees have felt unable to agree to any of the three options proposed.
"Our motion is requesting that any future reports and decisions be taken to full council for approval, where all elected members will be able to represent their communities."
Councillor Stafford added: "We now face the default position in which the council may take over the operation of any centres who refuse to sign up to the three options. This risks losing essential community input and involvement in these vital facilities.
"We are also unclear as to how this approach would allow the council to make the agreed savings which have now increased from £1.073m to £1.841m since the savings measure was first agreed and which do not take into account the loss of non-domestic rates relief which community centre management groups currently enjoy.
"Given the importance of these decisions, the impact they will have on every community right across West Lothian, the concerns raised by several members of the community regarding the accuracy and adequacy of the information being used to make decisions and the extent of the changes in the approach to achieving the savings introduced over the period; all elected members must be involved in the scrutiny and future decision making on the implementation of this budget saving measure.
"Any future paper requesting that a decision be taken on the implementation of this budget saving measure must now come back to full council for a decision subject to it first having been considered at the relevant PDSP."

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18/07/2025