AN online petition calling on Warrington Borough Council to step in to save the town’s 160-year-old YMCA from closing will be debated at the authority’s next meeting, on September 5.
The petition bears more than 1,500 names – which means it must be considered by the full council.
It calls on councillors to recognise the work the YMCA does in safeguarding the vulnerable, the homeless, people with mental health problems and addictions.
The council should fund some of the valuable services the YMCA provides – and calls on the council to discuss their commitment to end homelessness in the borough by 2018.
Officers will tell the council that any funding of the YMCA as suggested in the petition will have an impact on the overall council budget.
The council has already said it is not in a position to take on financial responsibility for the Winmarleigh Street charity.
But the YMCA, which says it only has enough money to keep going until November, has won the support of Warrington Trades Council who have written to the authority outlining the vital services the charity provides and pointing out that if it closes it is likely to increase pressure on other services, including the police.
