Forres House Community Centre groups call for Moray Council to keep facility open
Hundreds have complained on social media and a petition has gained thousands of signatures since the Forres Gazette revealed potential Moray Council plans to close Forres House Community Centre.
Closure could be part of “necessary” changes to sport and leisure services - the building was singled out in a consultant-penned review for its ‘poor financial performance’, ‘growing deficit’ and apparently-limited impact closure would have.
User groups currently include Peeps toddler group, Baby Bistro, Highland Youth Theatre, Forres Girls FC, Chan Quan Shu Tai Chi, Little Yogi Bears, Quilters, Little Fish, Sansum Martial Arts, ForWORDS writing group, DKMA Tang Soo Do, Body Blitz, Roots Gymnastics Academy, FC Thistle five-a-side football, Forres Pre-Kickers and Forres Archery.
And other regular activities inside are badminton, basketball, indoor cycling, boxercise, kettlebells, abs exercise, baby massage, circuit exercise, indoor bowls and walking football.
A number of users have spoken to the Gazette about the impact closure would have.
Moray Dance has held classes for more than 40 children a week at Forres House for 14 years. Instructors Rosalyn Wie and Stephanie Wie-Harris were outraged to hear about the threat of closure.
Rosalyn said: “I don’t know where else we would run classes. When I looked before due to the room we use being booked for school exams, it was very hard to find something suitable.”
Jenny Bichan has been teaching the ‘FLexercise’ class at the centre for the last seven years since taking over from her mum Pam Watson. More than 30 ladies attend every week, some of them since it first started in 1972. Pam, 87, also still teaches an over-70s seated class of around 30 participants in the upper games hall.
“Both classes have been a constant for over 50 years,” said Jenny. “We don’t want to move. The centre is a wonderful space and loads of the ladies enjoy staying for coffee afterwards.”
Jenny and Pam hope to continue supporting the health and fitness of the older population.
“We try to keep them independent and out of the health centre,” said Pam. “As well as helping mental health, exercise encourages older people to get out-and-about.”
Jenny has used the community centre for a range of activities during her life - from judo and discos as a teenager to badminton and basketball as a PE teacher.
“It’s a never ending list,” she said. “It’s always buzzing and very booked up!”
Helen Teasdale provides the Sassy Seniors exercise group for around 20 attendees on Thursday mornings.
“The group has been running for 20 years,” she said. “We’re all absolutely devastated at the thought of trying to find somewhere else.”
Bev Alexander is one of 25 members of Forres Netball team, who meet in the community centre every Thursday.
She said: “We started using the excellent sports hall over two years ago. Losing it would be such a loss, as there is no alternative in Forres currently available for us to meet and play.
“All of us have connections to the community centre via other groups we attend. so we’re very concerned at the prospect of it closing.”
Local mum and businesswoman, Claire Rhind, regularly attends Forres House with her teenage sons who are also in various user-groups.
“I’ve also attended various groups over the years,” she said. “It’s such a handy space for meeting people. The place is always busy, so I don’t see how closure can be justified. There are no equivalent alternative venues that all groups could transfer to. This simply cannot be allowed to happen.”
She added: “And the café is one of the best places to enjoy a bite to eat in town!”
Anna Henderson co-owns Forres Coffee House which has rented the community centre’s café for the last three years.
“We signed a 10-year lease with Moray Council in July 2022,” she said. “We've been warmly welcomed into the bustling life here and have been pleasantly surprised with the footfall in the building.
“The diversity of classes and groups for all age groups is amazing. Many attendees come to us for coffee, a bite of lunch and a catch up, and then go on to use the library.
“Our own children have enjoyed many of the different groups on offer, many of which they don't have access to at school.”
Anna finished: “The building is so much more than a sports and leisure facility. We hope the strong public reaction to the possibility of closure proves to Moray Council what an important lifeline it is.”
An independent review of the region’s leisure estate reported at full council in January set out information and options based on the condition of buildings, usage and costs. However, Moray Council state that there is no proposal to close the centre or adjoining library.
A council spokesperson said: “The review has led to speculation about the future of Forres House but the council has no proposals on the future of our sport and leisure facilities at present.
“Further work will complete the review of the whole service to ensure sustainability. We’ll publish any proposals and consult on those in due course.”
Outcome from consultation exercises is taken into account. When assets become surplus to the council, they are offered to the market but the spokesperson confirmed the local authority would be open to considering community asset transfers in “appropriate circumstances”.
Where any proposal has an impact on the council’s workforce, it aims “as far as possible” to secure alternative employment for employees should their jobs be at risk.
“The council has already approved savings of £4.1m to help balance our revenue budget,” said the spokesperson. “Full council is due to meet at the end of the month to agree any final proposals for the continued transformation of services.”
