WARNINGS were made that closing multiple children centres will have a “disproportionate impact” on Slough mothers.

The cash-strapped Slough Borough Council is eyeing to slash 10 children centres to three in a bid to save £431,000 and improve targeted help.

Senior councillors were keen to keep a north, south, and east offer so parents can still access the centres rather than have one borough-wide hub in Chalvey.

The three centres proposed to stay open are Romsey Close, Chalvey Grove, and Penn Road. A standalone early education provision in Yew Tree Road is also proposed to remain operational.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting prior to Christmas, children director Johnny Kyriacou explained Slough has an over-supply of children centres, requiring more resources where there is a surplus in some areas.

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Council leader James Swindlehurst (Lab: Cippenham Green) said some of the centres have a low number of users and by moving them to a larger hub, it will maintain that level of service when a member of staff falls sick or is on leave.

He also said: “We recognise that we are a small town and having maintained 10 centres in an area that’s three miles north-south and six miles east-west is a very generous provision that no other council has been able to sustain and being realistic we can’t either and it’s time to make those reforms and bite the bullet.”

If seven centres were to close, those buildings could be repurposed as day nurseries but be operated by the private or voluntary sector.

Senior councillors did not approve the closure of the seven centres but gave authorisation for a six-week consultation to be conducted from January 9 in order to gather views from residents.

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Deputy council leader Pavitar Kaur Mann (Lab: Britwell & Northborough) stressed the local authority needs to ensure it gets this right as the move will ‘disproportionately’ affect the centre users, such as mothers.

Cllr Mann, who uses the service, said: “This is going to have a disproportionate impact on the females in our town and possibly as well, from what I have seen and experienced, have a disproportionate impact on our BAME [Black, Asian, and Ethnic Minority] communities and our more deprived communities.”

Mr Kyriacou explained they will investigate further the equality impacts the closures will have on those communities once the consultation ends and speak further with partners and stakeholders before a final recommendation is made to cabinet.

Cllr Swindlehurst added if done right, there will be an “interesting and refreshed” model for the children’s centres that have a “stronger set of partnerships”.