Petition calls for children's centres to be saved

Goodness Oluebube describes her local children's centre as a "lifeline"

A group of parents have launched a petition asking the city council to reconsider its proposals to close half of Leicester's children's centres.

Save Our Children’s Centres (SOCC) say that the possible closure of six centres in the city will "disproportionately impact the most disadvantaged children and parents".

Leicester City Council runs 12 children's centres across the city, but is looking to save about £550,000 a year in running costs.

The authority ran a consultation on the potential cost-cutting plans, which finished on 9 June.

Sally Etheridge says the Save Our Children's Centres campaign is a "joint action led by many mothers from the city"

The centres are used for council-run services and by local community groups, such as Leicester Mammas and Heads Up, which provide breastfeeding support and antenatal classes.

Sally Etheridge, a director of Leicester Mammas and a member of SOCC, described the centres as "vital assets".

Ms Etheridge said: "Leicester has the fourth highest level of child poverty in the UK, and local children simply cannot afford to lose access to these centres.

“While we appreciate the council’s budget is stretched, the proposal to close children’s centres feels extremely short-sighted, given the beneficial impact the services they offer can have on long-term outcomes such as education and health.

"Removing these centres will increase demand for other services, for example, in health, social care and education."

Rahat Ahmed said her local children's centre closed in 2018

Goodness Oluebube, from Leicester, said having access to children's centres has been "a lifeline" as a new mother of twins.

She said: "The support and resources provided have been invaluable in helping me navigate the challenges of raising two babies at once.

"I don’t know how I would have managed without the guidance and community found at the children’s centres.”

Mother-of-two, Rahat Ahmed, also of Leicester, said: "As a new mum back in 2013 and being a wheelchair user, having a children’s centre within easy reach of my home was so convenient.

"It was disappointing when that children’s centre was closed in 2018.

"When my second child was born in 2021, I struggled a lot more with trying to get out and about with my little one, and I felt it really affected my confidence.”

In 2017, Leicester City Council said the number of local children's centres was reduced from 23 to 12.

The authority said the move was due to national cuts in the government grant that funded them.

A spokesperson said: “We are trying to preserve as many services for families in our communities as possible – these can be delivered in children’s centres, but they can also be based from other council and community-run buildings.

"We want to maximise our dwindling resources on services instead of buildings where possible.”

Follow BBC Leicester on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail] or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.