A COMMUNITY group that took over a former day centre in poor condition following a long running campaign is set to have its lease terminated.

The Gathering charity and community interest company was formed in 2024 by campaigners who’d been battling to reopen a day centre that had supported adults with learning disabilities.

The charity was eventually handed the keys to the Tudor Street Day Centre, in Abergavenny, from January 2025 with a year-long lease to show its concept of a community centre to support a wide range of vulnerable adults could succeed.

That lease expired in January this year when landlords Monmouthshire County Council opted against its renewal. Instead it offered a tenancy at will, which could be terminated without notice, and said evaluation of the charity’s ability to manage the building would continue.

Since the charity was granted the initial lease several trustees had left, with some allegedly “forced” out, and complaints relating to its operations and management were reported to the council.

The council’s cabinet is now being recommended to terminate the tenancy at will with The Gathering and invite expressions of interest for the future use of the building.

The cabinet member responsible for buildings, Labour’s Ben Callard, told a scrutiny committee the intention is the building would be made available to organisations serving “under represented groups.”

A special meeting of Monmouthshire council’s people scrutiny committee was presented a report setting out why it is proposed to terminate the lease. Members also heard from people who had been involved with The Gathering and a representative of the charity.

The council report set out it had initially provided The Gathering three months to address concerns over its governance and operation, which was then extended for four weeks from July, but said the threshold to grant a further lease hadn’t been met.

The report also stated: ” The recommendation is not a judgement on the value of community provision or a determination of contested allegations between current and former participants. It is a landlord and asset-management judgement, with the original proof-of-concept threshold having not been met to a standard that provides sufficient assurance for a further exclusive lease.”

Cllr Callard told the committee he was “very sad” to have to bring the report but said it wasn’t about the future of The Gathering but its management of the building and said: “We don’t feel at this point of time it is able to maintain a tenancy on what is quite a large and complex building.”

He also said: “I don’t feel able to recommend a prudent way forward is to recommend to issue them a new lease for this building. I feel it carries too much risk.”

Several councillors questioned the condition of the building when it was handed over to the charity but Cllr Callard said it was aware of the maintenance issues, estimated at £80,000 by the council. The charity’s business case proposed spending £45,000 on repairs in the first year, though only £10,000 worth could eventually be carried out.

A proposal that a temporary lease be extended to the end of the financial year, at the end of March, rather than January 1 as proposed was only by supported by four councillors on the eight-member committee.

Gilwern independent Councillor Simon Howarth said an extension would avoid “leaving a building empty over the winter period” and ensure people using the service would still be provided for.

Cllr Callard said he would consider the suggestion against the recommendations of ending the lease, and the risks identified, and the views of The Gathering.

The recommendation to terminate the lease and invited expressions of interest is due to be decided at the cabinet’s Wednesday, November 11 meeting when it will also consider feedback from the scrutiny committee.