Cardiff Council’s Cabinet will consider recommendations to look at its community buildings in the Pentwyn area of the city at its next meeting.
On January 16, the Cabinet will receive a report that outlines proposals to provide sustainable services and buildings in Pentwyn through the extended use of the Powerhouse and Pentwyn Leisure Centre and the sale of the Dome.
The Council has been exploring ways of providing services in a more joined up way that makes them more accessible, convenient and easier for customers to engage, contributing to the Cabinet’s key commitment to work smarter and better.
Cabinet Member for Community and Neighbourhood Regeneration and Social Justice, Cllr Lynda Thorne, said: “In the current climate, we need to make sure that we are making the best use of the resources available to us while balancing our desire to meet the needs of our customers.
“Across Cardiff, face to face services have already been greatly improved with the development of community hubs in a number of areas, providing a range of council and partner services in a particular neighbourhood and I pleased to be bringing forward these proposals for consultation with the community.”
The planned Maelfa development in Llanedeyrn will include a new community hub for the area incorporating the library service, a range of advice services from Council and partner organisations and a police office.
Running costs for the existing buildings in Pentwyn are high and there is a significant maintenance backlog. The Dome is the least used of these three buildings and so the Cabinet will consider recommendations to sell this building and reconfigure the provision of services in Pentwyn to achieve a more sustainable and efficient model.
The Powerhouse, which is a large building and at the heart of the community, will be refurbished and provide a major centre for learning and youth services in the area. An extension to the building is already planned to allow Flying Start to provide services from the building. The café will be offered as an opportunity for third sector or educational organisations to secure the service provision and to add community benefits such as training and volunteering opportunities.
Subject to capital receipt, funds will also be available to carry out essential maintenance at Pentwyn Leisure Centre and there are opportunities to extend the use of the building to include Neighbourhood Learning provision. Flying Start also proposes to use space within the leisure centre as office accommodation.
The Disability Advisory and Resource Team (DART), who are currently based at the Dome and offer specialist courses for adults with learning disabilities, mental health problems or physical disabilities, will be relocated to a suitable venue. A trial of this has taken place at the leisure centre without any adverse effect on the service.
The Cabinet will consider the recommendation to agree to community consultation taking place on these proposals, which will allow members of the community and interested parties with the opportunity to have their say on these proposals and the services that they would like to be provided in the area.
