A compromise has been reached to keep a youth centre going on the island.
The bigger of the two portable cabins which make up the current youth facility at Lamlash is to be relocated to a site originally planned for them behind the new high school, which also has community facilities.
Discussions have been going on for the last few weeks after it was announced that the current youth facility was to close because one of the cabins was no longer suitable for purpose and would have to be demolished.
Now, Jan Ward, head of North Ayrshire Council’s educational services, is proposing the relocation of the big cabin to provide an ongoing dedicated drop-in facility for young people to use.
She said: ‘This will be supplemented by programmed use of the community areas in the new school. This solution is seen as both providing young people with an independently managed base as well as given them access to the excellent sport and leisure facilities in the new community school.
‘There would also be the potential of adding a supplementary unit to the relocated unit in the future.’
The decision follows a meeting last week between NAC, community leaders and young people including Scott McMurray, Ru Cable, Eilidh Kerr, Gavin Dunn and Danny Currie, and youth worker Nikki Harris.
Scott said it was decided that the new high school was not ideal for youth work and that a separate youth centre was definitely needed.
‘The possibility of a mobile youth centre was also discussed and the future of the late night bus service was considered,’ he reported.
‘We were told that further communication between the young people of the island was crucial for deciding what was going to happen with this vital facility.’
Arran young people have set up an online petition at www.ipetitions.com/petition/theportacabin.
Lamlash community councillor Maureen Smith, who was involved in the talks, said: ‘I think we have to accept this as a successful conclusion to an otherwise impossible situation – not entirely what we had hoped for but much better than it was going to be.’
