Campaigners are urging a Derbyshire council which has withdrawn adult education services from five centres to find some new way to secure the future of one of the axed learning hubs to meet the needs of adult learners in the areas affected.
Derbyshire County Council recently announced that Adult Education Services are no longer to be run from five centres in Derbyshire, including Derbyshire Eco Centre, near Wirksworth, as well as Ashbourne Adult Education Centre, Long Eaton’s Community House, Matlock’s The Ritz and the Shirebrook Adult Education Centre.
But Grassroots Wirksworth members have helped set up a working group to discuss a new business model and management organisation with the council to at least secure the future of the Derbyshire Eco Centre and its services.
A Grassroots Wirksworth spokesperson said: “It is highly distressing to learn of the decision by Derbyshire County Council to close five Adult Education Centres including Derbyshire Eco Centre.
“The closures will be devastating for many of the adult learners who have previously used these centres, some of whom are vulnerable adults with needs which were being met by adult education provision.
“Those who were involved in the protest at County Hall in July regret this decision and hope that some way will be found by the county council of meeting the needs of adult learners in the areas affected.”
Grassroots Wirksworth revealed that a working group has been set up with the support of Grassroots Wirksworth, Wirksworth Town Council, the Institute of Quarrying or National Stone Centre and other organisations to discuss with the county council the possibility of establishing a new business model and management organisation to secure the future of the Derbyshire Eco Centre.
A Grassroots Wirksworth spokesperson added: “It is imperative that a way is found to continue and develop the Eco Centre’s work of education for sustainable living and a sustainable economy, and we hope that the dialogue which has begun with the county council will lead to this becoming a reality.”
Reform UK-controlled Derbyshire County Council says the decision to withdraw services from the five centres was made due to rapid changes to ‘grant conditions’ and reduced funding from the Government no longer supporting courses run from the centres as well as the council’s need to sustain remaining Adult Education Services.
The council’s Derbyshire Eco Centre, on Porter Lane, in Matlock, was originally launched to provide environmental ‘sustainability learning’ but campaigners descended on County Hall in the summer to try and persuade the council not to close the much-valued learning hub after courses were halted from the end of July.
Many have expressed strong opposition to the withdrawal of the services and campaigners had attracted 707 signatures with an online petition urging the council to keep the Derbyshire Eco Centre building open and up-and-running.
Campaigner Roger Jackson argued Derbyshire Eco Centre was an important hub for sustainability education providing courses in rural skills, creative subjects and personal development and he pointed out that Adult Education Centres provide important skill-based learning that can lead to better employment as well as educational support for vulnerable people.
Despite Derbyshire County Cllr Stephen Reed, Cabinet Member for Business Services, acknowledging before the council’s decision that there needed to be better communication with concerned residents, campaigners and union UNISON criticised the council for making such a big decision without a public consultation.
But the council’s decision to no longer run Adult Education Services from the five buildings followed a Government announcement that the Department for Education is looking to apply funding cuts and changes for providers to adult skills fund allocations for the 2025-26 academic year.
Cllr Jack Bradley, Cabinet Member for SEND and Education, said he took the decision, announced at the end of August, to declare the five properties, which had been used by the Derbyshire Adult Community Education Service, as surplus to the service’s requirements after funding from the Government no longer supports the courses.
He explained the council’s property team will consider what can be done with the buildings before any further decisions with options including selling those which are owned or leasing them.
Cllr Bradley also said the council has been liaising with community groups and users of the buildings to understand their needs and the potential options for them.
He added: “Not running any courses from these five buildings future proofs the whole Adult Education Service, puts us in a similar position to other councils, and importantly makes sure that we can afford to run the Adult Education Service within the money we receive from the Government.”
Cllr Bradley said the council is not making staff redundant and the Adult Education Service will seek Cabinet agreement in the autumn to consult on a full review of Adult Education Services and in the meantime the council will continue to offer a wide range of courses from its remaining ten Adult Education Centres.
The Department for Education said that for Derbyshire most adult education funding had been transferred to the East Midlands Mayoral Strategic Authority.
A DfE spokesperson said it has further devolved adult skills funding to give those with local knowledge the power they need to make decisions that are best for their areas.
The DfE has stated that adult education is key to its mission to grow the economy through its Plan for Change which is why it is spending over £1.4bn this financial year on the Adult Skills Fund as well as launching Technical Excellence Colleges like the construction TEC at Derby College.
An East Midlands Combined County Authority spokesperson said: “Decisions about Adult Skills Funding once made in Government are now being made right here in the East Midlands.
“For the first time, this funding is being designed around the needs of our communities. EMCCA is working with local colleges, councils, independent learning and voluntary organisations, and employers to ensure opportunities match the jobs of the future and the needs of our economy.
“The Mayor of the East Midlands, Claire Ward, has awarded Derbyshire County Council more than £4.5m in Adult Skills Funding for 2025-26 and it is up to the authority to ensure it reaches the people, businesses and communities who will benefit most.”
EMCCA stated that this figure was the same level of funding as 2023-24 and it supports a range of adult learning programmes from English language and family learning to personal wellbeing and skills for life.
An EMCCA spokesperson added: “Looking to the future, the Government’s commitment to provide £1.2bn nationally for Adult Skills in the Spending Review is a starting point, and we will make the case for a fair slice of this funding to come to the region.
“As things stand, adult education budgets are allocated annually, making it hard to plan for the long term. We want that to change which is why we are also asking Government to combine the region’s funding into a single, long-term funding pot.”
