Cleckheaton councillor accuses Kirklees Council of 'obscenely lopsided' spending

In March 2022, cabinet agreed a £670,000 investment into Cleckheaton Town Hall for improvements to access, the reconfiguration of commercial space, furniture and fittings, and refurbishment and redecoration.

This came as a wider £1.8m programme of investment across Kirklees’ four town halls.

Works were meant to be carried out between 2022 and 2026, but have not materialised, despite the March 2022 report recognising the potential reputational damage Kirklees Council could suffer if the halls were left to deteriorate.

The council has since confirmed that the £670,000 has instead been deducted from its capital plan - which funds projects like the Cultural Heart, George Hotel, and blueprint projects across Kirklees’ towns – to help balance the budget.

Accusations of council neglect to the historic Cleckheaton hall have been made repeatedly by the community, with safety issues found above the main stage in 2022 but repairs still not carried out years later.

The town hall was mothballed in September 2023 as part of a review of the council’s estate and now the local authority hopes a community group will take on its operation and assume responsibility for management and repairs, with £7m required for a full refurbishment.

It will cost £1.5m to get the town hall up to a standard where it could be reopened.

Cabinet member for Finance and Regeneration, Coun Graham Turner, said: ““As a council, we manage a huge number of buildings across Kirklees, and we’re currently having to make a lot of difficult decisions around our assets and investments every day – but this is a prime example of where we’re taking a more innovative approach to give one of these buildings a second chance.

“We fully believe this partnership approach is the best way to hopefully bring Cleckheaton Town Hall back into use, and it also gives the community who love this building so much the greatest possible involvement – as well as potentially unlocking more external avenues of funding which aren’t available to us as a local authority.”

But Cleckheaton ward councillor and leader of the Lib Dem group, Coun John Lawson, said: “The fact that the cash [for the town hall] promised to us by cabinet never materialised is completely in line with what we already know and confirmation that there has been a sustained period of active and considered disinvestment in Cleckheaton.

“The obscenely lopsided nature of investment in Kirklees has to be brought to heel.

"People in places like Cleckheaton understand that councils are struggling and that there must be heavy investment in Huddersfield, but the rest of the borough has to be given at least a chance to survive.”

Councillor Turner said that the council works to ensure it prioritises capital funding “proportionally”, while balancing the books to support the local authority’s key priorities.

He re-emphasised the council’s commitment to investing £1.5m into Cleckheaton, despite it being one of Kirklees’ smaller town centres.

If you have a story to share, email [email protected].