New hope for outdoor education centre (From Malvern Gazette)

New hope for outdoor education centre

12:13pm Tuesday 30th January 2007

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NEW hope for the future of West Malvern's Outdoor Education Centre could come from the Youth Hostels Association.

It has been revealed that talks are underway between the YHA and the centre's owner, Worcestershire County Council. A meeting to the site is also in the process of being planned.

While in its early days, the development provides some spark of light in what has been a dark tunnel for the local education centre, which the most high profile victim of £8m of budget cuts announced by the council last October.

The local authority decided to withdraw its £305,000-a-year funding because £1.7m of refurbishment was needed for its ageing buildings.

Now the YHA, which sold its 58-bedroom hostel on Peachfield Road last year because that too needed work on it, has been approached with a view to taking over the centre as a going concern.

Charlotte Judson, regional manager for the YHA, said the group already had seven such centres across the UK.

She added: "We have been approached by the county council and hope to look at the site in the next few months. After that we will have a look at its suitability.

"We have around seven outdoor education centres nationally and so this would not be a new thing."

She refused to comment on whether the plans would include a new hostel - "It is too early to say anything, really."

Jeremy Webb, Liberal Democrat county councillor for Malvern, said this could be "great news".

He added: "This could be great news for the centre, threatened with the very controversial withdrawal of its County Council Grant and struggling to find acceptable funding for the future. The YHA, already near agreeing terms for managing another council's facility, has shown interest in the Malvern option.

"It could be great news for Malvern, too. The YHA could carry on the good work of the Outdoor Education Centre - and perhaps also replace Malvern's previous Youth Hostel with another one on the centre site.

"I know people in the county will look forward to hearing about progress on this one".

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