Shock as Shropshire youth service funds cuts are put on hold

Councillor David Minnery, Shropshire Council's cabinet member responsible for the services, said he wanted the authority's scrutiny committee to look at ways of continuing to provide the same level of service.

The announcement came at yesterday's cabinet meeting where members were given a paper recommending that funding for youth services across the county was cut from £234,950 to £117,250 for next year.

Sessions in Shrewsbury, Oswestry, Market Drayton, Whitchurch and the Rea Valley would have been hit.

The council had come under fire in the last week over the plans, with Councillor Alan Mosley, who represents Castlefields and Ditherington in Shrewsbury, calling for a rethink.

Introducing the paper, Councillor Minnery said: "I am proposing that the matter not be determined today but the topic be deferred to the appropriate scrutiny committee.

"I fully accept and understand it has been through that committee previously but ask members to understand that was under a different regime.

"The direction of travel is not one totally supported by myself because I think there are opportunities to continue to deliver these services using partner organisations."

He added: "It could enable us to maintain current provision at existing levels."

The decision was welcomed by the leaders of both opposition parties, Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

Under the proposals Shrewsbury would have lost £40,000 in grants currently given to Shrewsbury Town Council for the service.

Oswestry's grant for youth services would also be cut from £24,640 to £11,500, Market Drayton from £24,060 to £11,500, Whitchurch from £15,580 to £11,500, and Longden, Ford, Rea Valley and Loton from £16,630 to £6,000.

A decision to cut funding for youth services on a scaled basis was made in 2014.

Last year Shropshire Council stopped providing the services directly and started providing money for other organisations to deliver the services.

Jay Moore, the former chairman of the Fusion Arts group which runs services in Oswestry, has previously said that the cuts could lead to the end of youth sessions in the town.

Councillor Mosley had also been critical, questioning why the council had found money for other threatened services, but had not looked to address the problem with youth services.