Under-threat study centre listed as community asset
BBCAn outdoor activity centre threatened with closure has been listed as a community asset in a bid to try to save it.
Hampshire County Council has proposed turning Stubbington Study Centre, near Fareham, into a secure children's home, which it said was needed to cope with high demand.
Following a campaign to save the centre, Fareham Borough Council has voted to make it an asset of community value.
The county council's cabinet will make the final decision on 18 March and could still decide to close the facility.
The Hill Head Residents' Association submitted the application, which gives community groups six months to raise cash to bid for the centre if it was put up for sale over the next five years.
The borough council officer's report said the centre was furthering communities' social wellbeing and interests, and the land was of community value.
Councillor Joanne Burton said: "It is disappointing that [Hampshire County Council] states future repair bills as a reason to close the centre.
"It is a disingenuous argument – it is not a financial burden. It is not loss-making – extremely disingenuous."
Residents' association chair Pamela Charlwood said: "We believe it has an unparalleled offering. The centre hosts 6,000 children a year."
Stubbington Study Centre, near Fareham, Hampshire, opened in 1935.
The proposal is that Stubbington Study Centre would close from 1 September 2025, with a planning consultation on the new children's home in summer 2026.
More than 20,000 people signed a petition against the closure and, in February, hundreds of people joined a protest march from Lee-on-the-Solent.
You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.