A briefing note to Cornwall Council members with Adult Education centres condemned to close have been given until January 20 to further feed back.

Councillors from the affected divisions argued in representations to Cornwall Council that there had been no meaningful consultation, that the scope of stakeholder engagement was limited and hasn’t taken into consideration opinions of councillors from rural areas which feed into the town provision.

The decision to close the centres was also announced two days before a public consultation on the closures was due to finish.

After listening to representations, the decision by the Monitoring Officer was that ‘extended engagement takes place’ and that ‘it is fed into the Strategic Director for his reconsideration, leading to a new decision’.

Councillor John Conway, Launceston South, is urging residents, especially disenfranchised learners, to get in touch with their local councillor to express their opinions. He said councillors from all divisions across the affected areas want to hear from learners, especially those who will be adversely impacted by the closures.

Cllr Conway said: “The whole of the East of the county is having Adult Education taken away from it. It’s appalling.

“The briefing note outlines where you can go if your centre is closed. If you live in Callington you could have gone to Saltash, but they are closing Saltash too. It just doesn’t make any sense to close so many in the East area.

“If you’re in Launceston, they are suggesting Callywith College in Bodmin as the next suitable venue. That’s two hours on a bus and impossible for anyone who doesn’t have a car.

“These are people who are trying to gain qualifications in reading, writing and maths who just need to learn the basic tools to get a job in the modern world. Some don’t even have English as a first language.

“They are being defrauded of their entitlement and yet, they’re the ones that need these opportunities the most. It’s utterly wrong.”

The decision taken by the Strategic Director Sustainable Growth and Development on behalf of the Adult Education Board of Governors to close seven centres is also highly irregular both councillors contest.

Cllr Hilary Frank, Saltash Essa and Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Children and Families at Cornwall Council said in a report to Saltash Town Council: “A decision to close the centres, is permanent, enabling £300,000 per year to be cut from the annual budget for each of the next three years.

“So, this decision is about future budgets, not 'in-year savings', and should therefore not have been taken by an officer.”

She adds in her report: “Strong objections were raised in letters from Saltash Town Council, Torpoint Town Council, and others, but Cornwall Council made no efforts to explore cost reductions with stakeholders.

“This unfair concentration of closures in one area will exacerbate existing inequalities and further isolate communities.”

In a final comment Cllr Conway said: “Cornwall Council’s motto is One and All. I think it should be changed to One and All… as long as you live in Truro.”