What’s Happening with the Old Youth Centre?

If you’ve walked, cycled or driven past The Green in the last couple of days, you’ll almost certainly have noticed the metal security fencing and scaffolding just erected at Ruddington’s former Youth & Community (‘Young People’s) Centre. Originally owned and maintained by Nottinghamshire County Council (NCC) it has lain empty and disused since December 2016, with the main building having to be boarded up in 2018 following repeated acts of vandalism. In December 2019 Ruddington Parish Council (RPC) announced it had purchased the facility from NCC to refurbish it and put it back into use…

Read More

New Community Centre Designs Unveiled

It’s being reported there’s been an overwhelmingly positive response so far to plans by Ruddington Parish Council (RPC) for its proposed community facilities behind The Green. Its decision to demolish the existing building and build a brand new community centre for our village followed an online survey the Council carried out late last year.  Nevertheless, RPC had hoped that the present premises (opened only in 1983) might be brought back into use temporarily whilst funding was sought for the new building. Unfortunately, it reports this has not proved to be a viable option. This is…

Read More

Former Youth Centre to Be Demolished and Replaced

The new owners of the former Youth & Community Centre on The Green – which has lain empty and disused for over four years – have revealed how they plan to bulldoze it and erect more modern facilities in its place. As we’ve previously reported, Ruddington Parish Council (RPC) bought the building from Nottinghamshire County Council in 2019. Their planned public consultation on its future was delayed by the Coronavirus outbreak. Meantime, the onsite parking there has been made available to village traders in order to free up visitor spaces nearer the shops.…

Read More

Community Centre Consultation

It’s almost a year since Ruddington Parish Council (RPC) announced it had completed the purchase of the former Youth & Community Centre site on The Green from Nottinghamshire County Council for use by our whole village community in the future. It has lain empty and disused since December 2016, with the main building having to be boarded up in 2018 (top) following repeated acts of vandalism. After lengthy negotiations, RPC Chairman Allen Wood finally received the keys from County Councillor Reg Adair eleven months’ ago amid great celebration and anticipation. He commented…

Read More

Parish Council Buys Community Centre

Ruddington Parish Council has announced it has now completed the purchase of the former Youth & Community Centre site on The Green from Nottinghamshire County Council for use by our community in the future. It’ll be considering options on how to use the building (pictured above, in 2017, before it was targeted by vandals) and consulting with residents and local businesses in due course. In the short term, the Council says it intends to make use of the Community Centre’s parking spaces to help ease parking issues within the village…

Read More

Council to “Dispose of” Village Youth Centre

Our former Ruddington Youth and Community Centre has now officially been put up for sale by owners Nottinghamshire County Council (NCC). This substantial building on The Green was most recently a fitness centre run by Project Body UK – the organisation selected by the County Council to take over the running of the former Young People’s Centre in 2014 when spending cuts meant that NCC could no longer afford to run it themselves. After reintroducing youth provision during the summer of 2016, the new tenants found they could not make it pay commercially. It has lain…

Read More

New Community Facility to Replace our Village Hall?

A meeting of Ruddington Parish Council has agreed a plan which could involve closing and selling off our Village Hall to help fund the purchase of the former Young People’s Centre on The Green. In April, we reported that continuing vandalism to the disused Youth & Community building had prompted owners Nottinghamshire County Council to take some decisive action over the empty premises. It released a statement which read: “After the recent damage to the centre the building has been secured and boarded up. Some further inspections are taking place following the vandalism, but if…

Read More

Councils To Negotiate on Former Youth Centre

The latest vandalism to Ruddington’s former Young People’s Centre on The Green seems to have finally prompted some action from Nottinghamshire County Council – which owns the disused premises. The building has been empty since December 2016 when “The Body Centre” ran into financial difficulties and was forced to close. Previously it had been Ruddington’s dedicated Youth and Community Centre but was leased out by the County Council to fitness firm Project Body UK in 2014 (for a planned ten year period) due to government spending cuts. In summer 2016 the conditional youth provision was reintroduced there…

Read More