The Dovecote Centre was suddenly closed early in the summer following the withdrawal of Adult Learning funding which resulted in NCC taking the decision not to renew their lease for the building which has been used as a community hub.
Subsequent to this the Town Council have corresponded with the Newcastle Diocese who own the building and stated our interest in retaining the building for the community.
Members of the Town Council met on Wednesday evening (12th October) to discuss to future of the Dovecote Centre as a community building, following the receipt in confidence of the indicative running costs.
It was agreed that due to the high running costs involved in the responsibility of the lease/building that it would not be viable for the Town Council to take this on alone.
The Town Council agreed that we would keep in touch with the Diocese, whilst we are not in the position to take on the responsibility of the lease/building alone, we would still be interested in entering into discussions with the Diocese to investigate the future of retaining the building for community use and the possibility of a community partnership with other local organisations.
Members stressed that as the building was built by the community of Amble it was important to attempt to retain it for community use.
Comments on the future of the building would be welcomed from the public.