The Young Adult Centre (YAC) in Park View Road, Southall, is set to reopen in January 2025, following a £2 million refurbishment to modernize and expand its facilities.

The much-loved youth centre, will offer sports, IT, music, and social spaces, has been a staple for the Southall community.

In April 2023, the council’s cabinet decided to invest in renovating the building, abandoning earlier plans to redevelop the site and relocate the YAC.

This decision did not come after a public consultation by the council’s Youth Service in 2022 or input from Ealing Young Champions during a 2021 meeting.

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The consultations were based on demolishing the centre to build flats and the voices of the Ealing Young Champions were ignored.

The reversal was driven by strong local resistance, led by the "Save Southall Youth Centre" campaign based in Southall Town Hall, which mobilized residents in a determined effort to preserve the centre.

Ealing Council's unexpected U-turn caught everyone by surprise and was celebrated as a victory for the local community, which had consistently argued that the YAC was irreplaceable and should remain at its current location.

While the refurbishments are underway, young people have been accessing temporary services at Dormers Hub in Southall.

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Council leader Peter Mason said: "The Young Adult Centre will be an incredible resource for young people in Southall well into the future. Our decision to invest in the future of the YAC responded to the growing need for opportunities for young people in Southall, who themselves have been the key decision makers in bringing proposals forward."

Councillor Josh Blacker, the council’s cabinet member for a fairer start, added: "I’m excited to see the reaction from the young people when they come through the doors for the first time, I think it will be a place that they will really enjoy and want to spend time there."

The journey from near-demolition to refurbishment is a testament to the power of community action and the importance of preserving spaces that matter to local people. The YAC's transformation from a threatened building to a community-led project is a victory for the residents of Southall, ensuring that this vital space will continue to serve young people for years to come.