A PETITION has been started to save Wiveliscombe Children’s Centre.

Almost 300 signatures have been collected since Somerset County Council announced plans to axe it along with 17 others as part of cost-cutting measures.

Cllr Eddie Gaines, who is involved with the In the Mix youth project in the town, feels there was a lack of engagement over proposals.

He said: “The petition demonstrates the level of feeling people in the community have for the centre.

“People who spent a lot of time making this happen are very angry about the proposals.

“Children’s centres were set up to prepare and support young families and our centre in Wiveliscombe is well-used.”

Cllr Gaines added: “I feel strongly about young people.

“The Beach Boys had a song out in the early ’70s called Surf’s Up, and the chorus is ‘a child is the father of the man’.

“I believe a person’s childhood does affect how good or bad a person is.”

As reported in the County Gazette last week, other facilities in Taunton, Bishops Lydeard, Dulverton, Creech St Michael and Langport are among those facing the prospect of being ‘de-designated’ as children’s centres.

Some of the buildings will continue to be used for other services if the proposals get the go-ahead. A decision will be made on Friday (November 22) at the earliest.

County council children’s chief Cllr Frances Nicholson insisted the money-saving proposals will see families from the most deprived backgrounds receive extra help.

She said: “These services are vital and I believe the restructure is what the service needs to help vulnerable children and their families in the long-term.

“This is about services – not buildings.

“Our priority has to be to provide front-line support where it is most needed, in places where it can be easily accessed – whether that is a children’s centre, a library, a school hall or a community centre.

“We were spending too much money on running services and not enough on actually delivering them. We are putting that right and doubling our spend on the front-line.”

To view the petition, click here.