The Save Southall Town Hall Campaign meeting took place on 8th December 2017 at the Dominion Centre. The organisers were delighted that on a cold evening so many people came and showed their support.

Janpal Basran, of the Southall Community Alliance, chaired the meeting and the four main guest speakers included: Suresh Grover - chair of the Save Southall Town Hall campaign, Pragna Patel of the Southall Black Sisters, Paul Heron and Sharmarke Diriye of Featherstone Terrace.

Ealing Council have recommended selling the historic Town Hall building to a faith group and in an area with such depleted community infrastructure, many residents felt this was a step too far.

Suresh Grover, of the Monitoring Group gave an impassioned explanation about the importance of saving the Town Hall as a community building for future generations.

The meeting heard about the reasons for selling Southall Town Hall, lack of community consultation and impact assessments. Austerity was being used to justify the sale of public assets, often used by some of Ealing’s most disadvantaged residents, including at Featherstone Terrace.

Ealing Council tried to cut funding to the Southall Black Sisters. This was successfully challenged in the courts. Ealing Council did not follow the correct procedure and their logic was flawed.

Paul Heron, solicitor from Lambeth Law Centre, confirmed that a legal challenge had been submitted, earlier in the same day, against Ealing Council regarding the proposed sale.

There was unanimous opposition to the sale of the Town Hall and residents expressed their frustration at not being consulted and listened to.

The Campaign will continue to work widely with all residents and actively involve more young people, using social media more widely to inform residents about how they can become involved in the campaign.

The Campaign already involves many residents and groups who are worried about the future of this iconic building. We will be arranging future meetings and want to continue informing residents about the need to preserve crucial secular community facilities, that are open to all.

You can write to the campaign at:
Save Southall Town Hall Campaign, Southall Town Hall, High Street, Southall, UB1 3HA

You can support the campaign by signing the petition at:
https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/save-southall-town-hall

For further information call either Janpal Basran on 07958 499222 or Suresh Grover on 07816 301706