PARENTS angry at the sudden loss of their children's youth club inundated their local councillor with phone calls.

The first that parents knew about the closure of Gilwern youth club to nine to 11-year-olds was when children brought home a letter, said Councillor Simon Howarth.

Cabinet member Councillor Liz Hackett Pain said the move "was not a backdoor budget cut" and promised to investigate.

Councillor Howarth said he had also checked the Little Mill club and that had also been closed to the age group.

He tabled an emergency question at the meeting of the full council last Thursday and demanded the provision for younger children be retained.

He said, "At 8pm on Wednesday of last week I was informed that the youth club service within my area had been removed for nine to 11-year-olds – I was appalled. Did the cabinet member know it was occurring?

Councillor Howarth said he had been on the phone until midnight talking to parents and asking council officials questions.

According to the unsigned letter from Wednesday, January 23 the club will be open from 5pm-6.30pm for 11-13 year-olds and 6.30pm-8pm for children older than 14.

The junior club has been open for nine to 13-year-olds from and the senior club for 13-17-year-olds from 7pm-9pm.

Councillor Howarth said the letter referred to funding issues as part of the reason for the move.

He said, "We should reinstate the youth club for seven to nine-year-olds until we can sort it.

Councillor Howarth asked that all 43 members of the council be updated on the situation within seven days.

Councillor Hackett Pain promised to look into the reasons for the move – criticised the leader of the Independent group for not contacting her directly.

She said, "I would have appreciated a phone call and I could have looked at it earlier. I need to look into the situation to give you a comprehensive answer."

"The reason could have more to do with the age group than cash," said Councillor Hackett-Pain.

"This is not a back-door budget cut – the staff are still there. The youth service operates for young people aged between 11 and 25 and it has been suggested the age groups should be split so you do not have young children with the older ones," she said.

A spokesman for MCC said, "Monmouthshire County Council's Youth Service provides an extensive range of activities for young people. The age range that it delivers for is between 11 and 25 and activities are designed for young people in this age bracket.

"There are occasions when children younger than 11 come to our clubs and this has recently been the case in Gilwern. We have written to parents / carers to remind them of the age requirements of the service. We will continue to welcome the younger children for the remainder of this school half term and thereafter we will signpost them to alternative play provision.

"We have also changed our youth group timings to ensure that more young people can access our services. Young people between the ages of 11 and 13 can now access the first hour and a half of the three hour session, whilst the second hour and a half is limited to young people aged 14 upwards.

"There have been suggestions that we have withdrawn services; this is not the case. We have adjusted session times so we can accommodate more young people and better target age specific services."