Shrewsbury boxing club handed keys to day centre
An arson-hit boxing club in Shrewsbury has been found a new home – in a former centre for disabled adults which was closed by Shropshire Council in cost-cutting measures last year.
The council has handed members of Shrewsbury Amateur Boxing Club the keys to the former Grange day centre in Levens Drive, Harlescott, by the council after its base in Smithfield Road was gutted in an arson attack last September.
The club has been given an initial six month lease to use the building as it gets back on its feet.
Graham Robb, a spokesman for the club, said it moved into its temporary new home on December 3.
"They have given us a six-month lease and they will review it after that," he said.
"It is brilliant news. We are now back to five sessions a week."
He said fundraising to replace the £15,000 of equipment destroyed in September's fire was also going well, with about £5,000 raised so far.
But fresh concerns have been raised about why the Grange Day Centre was closed last year.
Nicky Clark, from the Shropshire Cares campaign which battled to save the service, said she was happy the boxing club had found a new home, but said the situation raised questions about the rationale for the closure.
"It just proves this was a cost-saving exercise - it had nothing to do with the age or condition of the building," she said.
"It was just cutting back the service provision where what they were providing was an excellent service."
A Shropshire Council spokesman said today: "The reason for closing the Grange was because we believed we could provide a much better range of support for people who had previously gone there, using a personalised approach."
