More than a thousand people have backed a petition to save a garden centre run by autistic people, which is threatened under bankrupt Croydon Council’s list of cutbacks,
The Cherry Hub and the Cherry Orchard Garden Centre is a day centre for people with autism and learning disabilities to socialise and learn . The site is also home a popular garden centre, currently also owned by the council. The hub so far will remain open but their main garden centre project will be closed by the council.
The garden centre is run by volunteers and people from the hub with learning disabilities. It was set up so hub participants had a space they could learn about customer service and horticulture.
Charles Barber, a Croydon resident who started the petition last Friday, and has since garnered over 1000 signatures.
Barber said: “I am fed up, like a lot of people that public assets that should be for the community are being shut down. I understand that life is difficult for this council, but the money they would gain selling this off is very minimal compared to what they will save selling off something off.”
The council’s Asset Management Plan was announced in the last cabinet meeting to lay out budget cuts in response to the council’s recent Section 114 order. Croydon Council had to announce bankruptcy for the third time due to what Mayor Jason Perry described as “toxic bad debt”.
The cuts to the garden centre and adult health facility are predicted to raise £180,000, according to the council’s financial strategy report.
Other potential cuts with a larger asset base are estimated to raise around £100m. Barber and other petitioners feel that the £180,000 saved per year from closing the garden centre is not worth the negative impact on the community.
Barber is hoping, that there will be a debate in the council over saving Cherry Orchard Garden Centre following his petition.
Darren Winston, pictured above, has been working at the centre for 31 years and has also started a paper petition against the council’s decision in the garden centre itself.
Jane Templeton, from Addiscombe in Croydon, said her son uses the garden centre located in the Cherry Hub. She said: “My son who is a 34-year-old autistic and learning-disabled adult needs support at all times. Now the rug has been pulled completely from under our feet. Not just my son, many others use the COGC – it is a place of safety and friendship. By even considering closing this resource this shows they complete lack of empathy and compassion the current Mayor and some (not all) councillors have.”
Croydon Council has not responded to a request for comment.
The petition can be found on Change.org here.
Editor’s note: This story was edited on 13/12/2022 at 12:58 to clarify that only the garden centre is scheduled for closure, not the Cherry Hub autistic day centre.
