The Bulwell Hall Community Centre in Nottingham is facing court action from the city council over unpaid business rates. The centre, which provides vital services for vulnerable families in a deprived area, claims it was never informed that it needed to pay these rates. The council's decision to pursue legal action has sparked outrage from campaigners who argue that it will ultimately harm the community.
Nottinghamshire Live and the Nottingham Post are campaigning for the city council to protect our vital community centres. Backed by an open letter to the council signed by more than 300 people, each week we are highlighting the crucial work of some of these centres, continuing with the Bulwell Hall Community Centre.
"We were initially told 'don't worry about it, you don't pay any business rates', then the court summons came through. We were made to feel like criminals", says Katrina Howitt, the manager of the centre. Those costs were laid bare by the trustees at Bulwell Hall, where the electricity bill alone can come to around £1,500 a month. Although the previous £600,000 subsidy from the city council sounds like a lot on paper, quarterly grants to Bulwell Hall ended up being as low as £90 by the time they came to an end.
Cheryl Durrant, 30, is starting a 'baby and me' exercise group at Bulwell Hall and said: "Where we are, we don't have a community centre now because they've closed Rise Park, so this place is even more important." As well as the army of volunteers and trustees running Bulwell Hall, even those employed by the centre part-time have often gone above and beyond to provide for those using the facility. Katrina Howitt said: "A lot of the kids who come here genuinely think that I live here."
COMMUNITY CENTRES BUSINESS RATES NOTTINGHAM CITY COUNCIL DEPRIVED AREAS VOLUNTEERS
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