THERE are fresh hopes that new services could be available in the town after the closure of the charity WHERE last month.

The charity had for many years supported individuals and groups from the town and beyond.

It closed last month following the retirement of long-term manager Barbara Ford and the charity not having sufficient funds to keep its operation going. Since then there have been various discussions about the future of the buildings and what gaps in service provision the closure of the charity has created.

One of the County Councillors for Wellington and Rockwell Green Andrew Govier has initiated some of these discussions and said: “We were all sad to see WHERE close. It provided a number of important services and was a lifeline for many people in the town. I have been contacted by a number of local residents who either used, or had famiiy members that used, the facilities and services at the centre.

“There is a strong desire to see the buildings brought back into use and for some of the services that have been lost restored.’

Cllr Govier added: “I have had some initial discussions with officers at the county council - who own the permanent building and the land the pre-fab is sited on - and they have confirmed that there are no immediate plans to do anything with the site. I think they would be open to a community-based solution coming forward and I am having conversations with other local groups who have expressed an interest in using the building.

“We are very aware that a lot of people in the town are struggling at the moment with the cost of living crisis and the effect that this is having on people’s physical and mental health. This is particularly acute coming on the back of the isolation many suffered during the Covid pandemic. Ideally, I would like to get interested parties talking about what services they would like to deliver and whether this is the most appropriate location.

“There are other vacant, council-owned buildings in the town and we need to assess the merits of each of them.”

There are further meetings planned for the coming weeks between interested parties including potential funders and it is hoped that these will start to shape the new services that will be delivered from the site in the future.