A West London council has rejected a proposal that would allow a garden centre facing closure to stay open, with a senior councillor saying “we’re not in the business of selling plants”.
The Rural Activities Garden Centre in Uxbridge, which is maintained by volunteers with learning difficulties, will close following a Hillingdon Council decision that it could no longer afford the subsidy.
On Thursday (July 10), a motion was presented to Hillingdon Councillor by Councillor Sital Punja, which would have allowed the centre to attempt to raise funds.
She said: “By supporting this motion, Cabinet can take 90 days to produce a robust and fit for purpose report, meanwhile during that 90-day period, ask the community at RAGC to raise the necessary £137,000 needed to keep the RAGC open. Should they be able to raise the funds, then that subsidy from the council would not be necessary, and everybody wins.
“If this closure is purely about subsidy, then there is no reason that members here cannot give them a chance to raise the money to keep the centre open. So I ask give them a chance.”
Cllr Punja received a round of applause from a packed out public gallery filled with ‘Save the RAGC’ campaigners. Councillor Eddie Lavery responded to the motion explaining that the council is “not in the business of selling plants”.
He said: “It will not surprise council that I am not supporting this motion tonight. The Cabinet has already made a decision on a clear report with appropriate recommendations. Cabinet decisions as I will remind the opposition are collective, that is why they are taken in open Cabinet as a group.”
Hillingdon Council says it is only closing the retail aspect of the site, which it says makes a loss of £137,000 per year – which the council subsidies. This was something referred to a number of times by Conservative councillors, including Council Leader Cllr Ian Edwards.
However, in closing the loss-making retail aspect of the site, which will close the centre altogether, and relocating volunteers to flower beds outside the Civic Centre, campaigners are concerned about future care provision.
One resident, Isabel Stevenson, put this to Cllr Palmer, Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care.
She said: “I am frightened for the safety of my son, who has been attending the Rural Activities Garden Centre as a gardener for many years. It is a safe and calming environment where our family can get respite for a few hours knowing he is safe with friends doing what he enjoys the most.
“Please can the Cabinet member explain to me how the open aspect of the Civic Centre gardens allocated as the alternative provision to RAGC can be made safe for my son.”
Cllr Palmer responded: “Each person that will be attending the Civic centre environment will have a risk assessment in place, as well as a detailed support plan, and the familiar staff who know them well, will continue to provide that support in a safe way.”
She went on to say the Civic Centre has “robust” safety procedures. Isabel, among other residents who sat in the public gallery, shook her head disapprovingly.
The motion failed, with all present Labour and Hayes Independent Group Councillors voting in favour, and all present Conservative Councillors voting against. The Rural Activities Garden Centre is set to close on July 31.
Philip is a Local Democracy Reporter covering Ealing, Hillingdon and Hounslow, with a focus on council decisions, housing, planning, licensing and community stories across west London.
