Following our successful community demonstration on Saturday 28th January, we have written to Falkirk Council Leader, Craig Martin asking for the Councils budget position on proposed cuts to Community Learning and Development services. UNISON Falkirk Branch has been hearing from various sources that cuts will be scrapped, however, we have not had any official correspondence from Falkirk Council as of yet.
Below you can see the letter that was sent to Councillor Craig Martin, along with a large volume of letters from concerned members of the community who attended the demonstration last week.
Dear Councillor Craig Martin,
Leader,
Falkirk Council
FALKIRK COUNCIL CUTS TO COMMUNITY LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT
Please find enclosed letters signed by a mixture of council employees and local residents who attended the UNISON led demonstration on Saturday 28th January outside Falkirk Municipal Buildings to protest against the proposed cuts to the Community Learning and Development Service.
We note the report in the Falkirk Herald (Thursday 26 January) which quotes you as saying:
“We could have told them there is no support from elected officials of Falkirk Council’s Labour group administration for the community learning and development service cuts they have mentioned and are campaigning against.”
This was relative progress compared to previous correspondence. However, the report goes on to further quote you as saying that “budget details are still being finalised” and that “we are doing our best to protect these services, although it is getting harder and harder to do so.” I hope you will appreciate that we could not accept this as a guarantee and that we had to continue to campaign on behalf of our members.
However, your comments do make us hopeful that the council is seriously considering options to retain the CLD Service. Some members of communities who have spoken with us have also been getting this impression from discussions they have had with councillors at local level. If the council is able to respond positively to the representations made by workers and communities, UNISON will be delighted to welcome this.
In the light of this, I would be grateful if you could respond to the enclosed letters and let us know if you can confirm officially that the CLD cuts are not going ahead.
Yours sincerely,
UNISON Falkirk Council Branch