I am concerned to see that Hadleigh Town Council (HTC) are meeting on Tuesday evening on an extraordinary basis to consider the tenders (estimated to be around £1 million) submitted for the work on the pavilion and to then agree the amount they intend to borrow from the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB). 

The new pavilion's most recent design was agreed by HTC to meet increased demand generated by the proposed new full size artificial pitch planned on the Layham Road Sports Ground (LRSG) site.

When HTC voted against splitting the new pavilion and pitch into separate projects in August 2022, Cllr Beggerow (also treasurer of Hadleigh United FC) spoke at length on the item, saying that the proposed pavilion was designed to accommodate the extra use from the then planned 3G pitch, and that without the 3G pitch the pavilion design could be scaled down.

The council recently cancelled the pitch project but, inexplicably, the pavilion design remains unchanged. Improved facilities have been needed for many years, but what is the justification for the specification now?

The council do not seem to have reviewed whether a more modest pavilion might now be a better option. The council noted the business plan in December 2022, before the pitch project was cancelled. That business plan forecast a grant of £250K from the Football Foundation, despite the Football Foundation informing the council it would only grant 'up to £25K' if the pitch project did not go ahead.

Mayor McLeod wants to make borrowing decision behind closed doors

The council is already burdened with the repayments for the PWLB loan for the cemetery extension for the next 25 odd years (currently around £30K/year). Contrary to council forecasts and its original business plan, the cemetery extension continues to operate at a loss.

The council also subsidises the Guildhall, increasing its annual subsidy next financial year from £40K to £60K. While there have been longstanding aspirations among some councillors to make the complex pay for itself (for example, by long term letting), the Guildhall continues to cost more than it makes and is empty and unused for long periods at a time while other rooms for hire in the town are over subscribed.

In its latest budget, the council appears to be running down its reserves to below the recommended minimum of three months operating costs. 

Meanwhile, I understand that some LRSG based sports clubs' representatives have discussed with developers an alternative location for a sports hub, elsewhere in Hadleigh.

The council appears to be ploughing ahead with a pavilion designed to cope with a forecasted demand that has evaporated.

Why are councillors apparently so keen to press ahead with yet another financially unjustifiable project? Surely now, with the pitch project canceled, it is essential to reconsider what sort of pavilion is needed for the people of Hadleigh at the Layham Road site.

Angela Wiltshire

Hadleigh