Lib Dems 'Call In' Children's Centres Closure Decision

Scrutiny committee will now review the case

Lib Dem councillors Gary Malcolm (left) and Jonathan Oxley (right) with Clare Welsby of the Save Ealing’s Children’s Centres campaign group

June 18, 2025

Ealing’s Liberal Democrats have forced a review of the Labour-run council’s decision to close 10 children centres in the borough.

The decision was taken by the council’s cabinet last Wednesday (11 June ) after the original list of 13 at-risk centres was reduced to 10.

The Liberal Democrats used their powers to call in an executive decision for further scrutiny. The party will now present their case to Ealing’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 3 July in the hope of stopping the closures.

An online petition has gained almost 2,000 signatures, urging the council to change course.

A spokesperson for the Save Ealing’s Children’s Centres campaign group said the action is “welcomed”. The spokesperson added, “This is a matter of utmost importance for children and families across our borough who depend on their children’s centres as a lifeline to a range of vital services.”

“The ‘Save Ealing’s Children’s Centres campaign will again be out in force on July 3rd, for the meeting of the Scrutiny Committee, to show Ealing Council the strength of the community feeling that our children’s centres must be kept open and fully supported.”

The Liberal Democrats will present their case to the Labour majority Overview and Scrutiny Committee, which is tasked with scrutinising executive decisions made by cabinet. If successful, the opposition could force a u-turn on the proposals.

Councillor Jonathan Oxley, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Children’s Services, said, “The Liberal Democrats say that Ealing Labour’s consultation on closing children centres has been shameful.

“They baked cost savings from closing them into their council budget while the consultation was still open. Now they’re ignoring the overwhelming opposition from parents and childcare professionals in the consultation, by pressing on with their reckless policy of closing ten of our precious children’s centres.”

Ealing Council was contacted for comment. A spokesperson for the authority previously said, “Children’s centres provide vital services for families and are cornerstones of the community, but the current setup is not working. We have 25 centres, but despite increased demand for statutory children’s services, not all families who could benefit are using them.

“Supporting our most vulnerable residents is a top priority for us and our aim with the children’s centres is to design a service more tailored to our families’ needs and move services into the community to better reach those who may need our help while retaining the largest number of children’s centres in London.

“The goal is to reach more families, earlier, with better support, and while some centres will no longer operate in their current form, the services themselves are being enhanced, with all seven towns seeing an increase in children’s centre activity following the changes.

Protesters outside Ealing Council offices

“We’ve worked closely with the community throughout this process and have engaged with over 2,000 residents and have adapted plans based on what we’ve heard. We remain open to ongoing dialogue with all community stakeholders.”

Philip James Lynch - Local Democracy Reporter