In a “devastating” and highly questionable move last year, the Labour leadership of Kirklees Council permanently closed the sports centre in Dewsbury – one of England’s most deprived towns.

Dewsbury sports centre

The West Yorkshire council has a “strong leader” system, which controversially allows a small handful of councillors from the biggest party – in this case Labour – to make all the decisions. And Labour decided to close Dewsbury sports centre in November 2024. The former leader of the council, Cathy Scott, called the facility “a cornerstone of our community”, saying the decision “threatens the well-being of the entire town”.

A local campaign has raised 5,000 signatures asking for the reopening of Dewsbury sports centre. This adds to public pressure in the form of a rally, a public march, and numerous community meetings.

Organiser Surraya Patel told the Canary about ongoing efforts to get justice for Dewsbury residents. She stressed that the campaign has engaged in “deputation speeches and formal questions” in the council chamber, alongside “dozens of written submissions and emails highlighting the devastating impact of the closure on Dewsbury”. She also pointed out that campaigners doubt the logic behind the closure, because:

an independent structural survey, obtained through a Freedom of Information request, contradicted the council’s rationale for full closure, raising serious concerns over transparency and decision-making.

The council, she said, seem to have ignored that survey’s findings.

“The devastating impact of the closure”

The closure, Patel insisted, has particularly hurt “residents without personal transport”, including older people and low-income families. Children, meanwhile, have been:

losing vital curriculum learning time due to lengthy travel for swimming lessons — often over 40 minutes each way — disrupting their education and increasing pressure on schools.

There has also been a:

Dramatic loss of footfall in the town centre, contributing to further shop closures and economic decline.

And Dewsbury has seen:

A rise in anti-social behaviour and the severity of local crime

In the council’s own Integrated Impact Assessment (IIA), Patel added, there was a clear warning about “the negative consequences for Dewsbury residents” as a result of the sports centre closure. But the council leadership apparently disregarded this.

Patel also asserted that the council has effectively ignored the petition, while refusing to “traipse” over to Dewsbury to meet campaigners in person. She further highlighted that cost estimates for reopening the centre “have shifted significantly and without transparency”, with “no full cost breakdown or justification”.

The feeling of ‘neglect and abandonment’ is particularly raw because:

Kirklees Council has continued to borrow and invest tens of millions into Huddersfield-based ‘regeneration’ and leisure projects

And one councillor even gaslit campaigners by suggesting the sports centre had “no positive impact” on the health of local people, all while calling for a leisure centre in her own ward.

Labour leader of the council Carole Pattison has said there’ll be a “major engagement exercise” with Dewsbury residents over the sports centre this summer. But as of yet, there has been no concrete commitment regarding it.

Dewsbury deserves better

The deprivation in Dewsbury is something that many other northern towns and cities share, especially areas “that have historically had large heavy industry manufacturing and/or mining sectors”.

Independent Alliance MP Iqbal Mohamed represents Dewsbury and Batley. And he has long stood alongside campaigners calling for the reopening of Dewsbury sports centre. He has raised the issue in parliament, saying:

The impact of the closure on my constituents, including thousands of young people, is catastrophic.

And he has followed up on this numerous times due to a lack of support from Keir Starmer’s government.

Like many other people around the country right now, Mohamed believes Labour’s shift far to the right makes the creation of a new left-wing alternative essential. And he has said such a party:

has to be selfless, representative, inclusive and honest.

He added:

I’m hopeful that I can be part of something that is genuine grassroots, people-first. Peace and justice-focused.

Decades of neoliberal politics, with its catastrophically poor management of industrial decline, have badly hurt communities like Dewsbury. And Labour has proven – both in local government and national government – that it has little to offer these areas.

Local organising, around key issues of concern like the Dewsbury sports centre closure, could be a central part of a new era of “grassroots, people-first” politics.

Featured image and additional images supplied