Over 100 people attend meeting to discuss future of Cleckheaton Town Hall

The discussion, which took place at St Johns the Evangelist Church, on Friday, November 3, allowed around 120 members of the community to put questions to Kirklees Council finance chief, Coun Graham Turner.

The council say that the Town Hall will continue to be closed and mothballed while an investigation takes place.

Kim said at the meeting: “Many of us use it and we know the many benefits it gives through its services to individuals, families, local groups and the community as a whole.

“I’ve attended the Folk Festival, University of the Third Age events and the pantomime here, as I know many of you have. I even had a go at ballroom dancing not that long ago!

“I love Cleckheaton and I know how proud we are of it. It is a very special place, but it is also a very costly place to run.”

Kim said she had called on the government to look again at the funding formula for local authorities so the money goes to where it is needed most and had written to Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, to call for a national Town Hall support fund.

She added: “This isn’t just an issue here in Cleckheaton or Kirklees, it is an issue in many places across the country where councils of all political persuasions are struggling.

“I’m not sure this is what Levelling Up looks like.”

Questions from the public covered how long the inspection would take, what different funds might be available, and whether other uses for the hall, including commercial ones, could help meet the running costs.

Coun Turner said of the Town Hall, which is a listed building: “We don’t believe it is safe right now, and we need to carry out intrusive work into the Town Hall to discover the problems and then work out what is needed to be done from there.”