Crisis point for Cunningsburgh clubs
FUNDING and staffing problems mean the future of Cunningsburgh Village Club hangs in the balance with an emergency general meeting called for 10 October.
The emergency meeting, the second in as many years, follows difficulties for the cash-strapped club in recruiting new committee members and could lead to it folding if a new committee is not established.
The club building is used by the senior and junior youth clubs as well as the Peerie Club and a variety of other community organisations.
Club committee chairman Gary Cape has written to parents of children in the Cunningsburgh area, saying the community is being asked to make a decision as to whether the club is still required.
His letter says that the club has been struggling to meet its running costs for some time and that there is no money for new equipment or improvements to the single-glazed building.
Cape writes: “There is just not enough money coming into the club to do anything more than pay the day to day running costs. We have no money to pay for the inevitable repairs that are needed to maintain an ageing building.
“We have no money to replace a tired, inefficient and cripplingly expensive heating system. We have no money to replace unsuitable single-glazed windows. Worst of all, we also have no money to invest in new equipment for the kids to use and enjoy.”
He says that many of the existing committee members feel they can no longer commit the time and energy that is required to “keep this unique resource available to the wider Cunningsburgh community.”
As well as hosting youth clubs, the Village building has held the doctor’s surgery, been a polling station, youth hostel, party venue and school classroom “amongst many other things.”
Cape adds: “The committee have always striven to provide access to the club’s facilities – at little or no charge – for those in the community that need them.
Help keep Shetland’s news open to everyone
Good local journalism takes time, care and people on the ground. Membership helps us keep reporting the stories that matter to Shetland — and keep them free for everyone to read. Members get a weekly newsletter created especially for them, local ads only, and can bookmark stories and join the conversation in the comments.
Already a member? Sign in.
“The club now needs a new committee to bring the energy and commitment to take it forward into the future; the sources of funding that the club needs to turn around its fortunes have been identified. What is required is a committee with the drive and determination to take the steps required to make best use of the available resources for the benefit of the wider community.”
Cape also pays a warm tribute to the “committed team of youth workers” whose “enthusiasm” and “real passion for engaging with the kids” helped them get the most out of sessions as well as having “as much fun as possible”.
There has also been a “great team of parent volunteers” involved running the Peerie Club for the younger bairns.
Cape adds: “That’s not to mention how fortunate we are to have the Village Club building: a place dedicated to the community and the kids; a place where kids can come and relax and be themselves; a place where all the youth club equipment can be stored; a place where the kids can express themselves and be messy, decorate the walls and engage in craft and cookery activities without worrying about ruining the carpet.”
Ongoing fundraising and subscriptions have been insufficient to do more than pay the running costs, the letter says.
It adds: “The club now needs a new committee to bring the energy and commitment to take it forward into the future; the sources of funding that the club needs to turn around its fortunes have been identified. What is required is a committee with the drive and determination to take the steps required to make best use of the available resources for the benefit of the wider community.
Failing that, it needs a decision from the community it was built to support that it is no longer required. To this end an Emergency General Meeting has been called, to be held on Wednesday 10th October at 7.30pm, to have an open and frank discussion about the future of the club. All community members are warmly invited to attend and have their say.”
The youth clubs are planned to re-open on Thursday 27 September – with juniors (P4 to P6) from 6.30pm to 8pm and seniors (P7-S3) from 8pm to 9.30pm.
Subscriptions will remain at £1 per session. Due to the uncertainty surrounding the future of the club, the the annual membership charge will be dropped.
“We would, however, ask you to consider making a one-off donation of £10 to support the financial costs incurred in the running of the club building until a decision has been made regarding its long-term future,” writes Cape.
Responding to the story on Facebook, South Mainland councillor George Smith said that he was “extremely sad” about the plight of the club.
Smith, who was the community worker for the area involved in securing funding for the youth centre, said that council grant aid for such schemes had declined massively over the years,
Smith writes: “ I can understand why, given the competing demands for Council funding, but I honestly think that reducing support for youth work is short sighted and goes against the ethos of early intervention. I am sure that many a young person will have been helped to make a better decision in their lives through having that engagement with a youth worker. That in itself may well have saved many times more money in the future than the cost of properly supporting youth work.”
Keep Shetland’s news open to everyone
Your membership helps us report the stories that matter to Shetland — and keep them free for everyone to read.