Just when you think that Wandsworth Council cannot get any worse, it surpasses itself. 

Having recently demolished Battersea Park adventure playground, claiming they could not afford staffing and would therefore install new permanent structures for younger children that would not need staff, they have now revealed new details of their plans – charging.

The adjacent one o’clock club will become a cafe, and there will be a sealed-off area that will have more challenging structures that will need staffing, and people will have to pay to use them.  It will be outsourced to other organisations. Seven one o’clock clubs will be closing down in the borough, and the buildings will be used by outside providers to use for two-year-olds’ education. 

The council said that these are the only available buildings that they can spare for this requirement. Let us face it, Wandsworth Council, like others, is shirking its responsibilities to us by offloading our public services. Youth centres, libraries, school playgrounds, medical institutions, meals on wheels and school crossing patrols are all being given away.  That is unless we stand up and stop them. 

After all, once they are gone, we will never get them back. 

Colin Crilley

Tooting