August 2011

LOCAL MP CHECKS OUT COMMUNITY PAYBACK SCHEME IN WHITWICK

Local MP Andrew Bridgen has seen at first hand the Community Payback scheme of work for the Whitwick Community Centre, including a new coffee shop.

Planning permission for the scheme to build the Whitwick Community centre was achieved on July 5, and the team are now working hard to secure the funding for the project and are in negotiations with “Community Builders”, as well as other funding bodies.

The Community Payback team started work on the site on August 10, and will be working over the next few weeks to clear up the rubbish and undergrowth from the site to facilitate the construction of the new building.

Andrew, the MP for North West Leicestershire, said: “The Probation Service’s Community Payback Scheme is a excellent idea and over the last twelve months beneficiaries have included churches, charities, schools and colleges, community centres and parks.

“Last year Leicestershire and Rutland Probation Trust completed 157,964 hours saving the tax payer £936,726.52 (at minimum wage) throughout the whole area. In NW Leicestershire alone, 38 different offenders completed 358 hours last month.”

In the long term, the Whitwick project has to be self sustaining, and so the group has been instrumental in setting up a training consortium of local charities to provide training for those who “fall through the cracks” in the current training facilities in the area. Providing training will be one way to provide an income stream for the project.

The centre has also been designed to minimise the on-going running costs to the project and will include solar panels and other eco friendly systems, which will help to reduce the bills in the long term.

This press release was supplied by Andrew Bridgen’s communications team.