MP says council should be 'ashamed' as popular Sutton cafe faces closure

Rumbles Community Café is set to close when their current lease comes to an end on June 29 – and bosses say the Ashfield Independents-led council is forcing them out.

The Sutton Lawn-based café has been serving the community for more than 15 years, providing work for people with learning disabilities and training for some of the most vulnerable members of society, teaching them essential life skills.

It pays a peppercorn rent to the council for its lease. Negotiations to extend the lease have been ongoing since September, after the café was originally served notice, but Rumbles bosses say the council is “no longer seems interested” in negotiations.

A number of campaigns were launched in attempt to save the café and a petition to save it received more than 4,500 signatures.

Mr Anderson, Conservative MP for Ashfield, said: “This fantastic facility run by volunteers provides a brilliant support system for people with special educational needs to learn skills which will help them lead a much more independent life.

“The Ashfield Independents often talk of cuts to services, yet are allowing the people of Ashfield to lose this valuable service that is a lifeline to hundreds. They should be ashamed.

“This venue could easily be a Starbucks or Costa, charging over-the-odds prices and paying the council a standard market-value lease, as it would be the only café on Sutton Lawn.

“Instead, we have this amazing community café providing fantastic work opportunities to some of the most needy people in Ashfield.

“It is an absolute disgrace that the council seems hell-bent on closing this much-loved café, despite offering support to other cafés elsewhere in Sutton.”

Tamar Roberts, cafe director, said: “We are devastated the council appears not to be interested in negotiating to extend our lease.

“This café offers excellent opportunities to some of the most vulnerable people in our community and now I will likely have to tell them these opportunities are being taken away.”

Sutton Sailing Club was also forced to close last year after its lease expired and it was only offered a new lease on vastly increased terms – up as much as 4,000 per cent, according to the club, which it could not afford.

Coun Jason Zadrozny, council leader, said: "Councils like Ashfield have a legal obligation to ensure we use our buildings and assets wisely and they are cost-effective.

“We have been entirely reasonable throughout this negotiation with Rumbles.

“The simple fact is, however, the café is profit-making, but still wants taxpayers of Ashfield to pay for their utility bills and clean up after them.

"No other café we run asks this and we have still offered a highly subsidised rent.

“If Rumbles does not want to agree to our terms then someone else will be offered the chance to provide a community resource for residents, one that does not require subsidies from the people of Ashfield.

“Given his government has cut the council’s budget to the bone over the past 13 years, we will take no lectures from Mr Anderson. If he wants to do something useful, I suggest he speaks to his colleague, Communities Secretary Michael Gove, and gives councils like ours a fair funding deal.”

Gina Dolan, Rumbles founder, said: “We are doing a great thing here and it is time the truth was heard.

“We are a non profit organisation, the finances accrued during the coronavirus pandemic are not an accurate portrayal of the annual costs.

“We received a government loan to help us out. The only paid people are the professional staff.

“We pay nearly £400 a week for utilities, we pay for bins to be emptied and pay for all our own equipment.

“The only thing Ashfield Council pays for is the public toilets and they want us to take over maintenance of those, however that is not our job as they are responsible for that and full maintenance would be too costly.

“We do not have the funds or resources for that.

“Labour and Conservative councillors and the MP have been supportive, but it is just the Independents who will not meet with us.

“All they do is send copies of ultimatums and are not willing to work with us or negotiate.

“We do have a lease. I do not know what else we can do.”