‘WE are still doing our very best with a very tight budget’.

That was the message from Cllr Sue Perkins at Monday’s Cabinet meeting as councillors discussed cuts to the Learning Pembrokeshire service.

The service, which provides essential skills and support for adult learners, has seen a huge drop in funding over the last couple of years.

In January 2015, the Welsh Government notified authorities that the funding would be reduced by £85,600 from April 1 this year with the possibility of a further cut for 2016/17.

The council has therefore been forced to reduce its learning provision and a plan has been put in place to maintain the service.

Cllr Sue Perkins said: “As you can see, last year the Learning Pembrokeshire grant was cut by 25% by the Welsh Government and this year there have been further reductions.

“Our Adult Education has had a huge amount of money removed from it so what we are trying to do is to provide all the adult education that we do now without cutting courses in the best way possible.

“We are trying to manage with the cuts we have had to make. We’ll still provide the basic skills courses and the courses that help in areas of deprivation like Spirngboard. So we are still doing our very best with a very tight budget.

“To move this forward we have two phases. In phase one, we are talking about rationalising the central part in Haverfordwest, we’re moving the education facility in Pembroke Dock to another location that is only 200 yards away. In Fishguard we are talking about relocating the delivery into other community venues.

“In phase two, we’re talking about ceasing to maintain the centres in Haverfordwest and Tenby. In Tenby it will have a knock on effect with the library and the youth centre so it’s going to take a lot longer.

“We’re trying to provide these facilities in a very shrinking budget”.

Cllr Pat Davies had also emailed members of Cabinet about her concerns for the Fishguard area and the Head of Performance and Community, James White, was asked to comment.

He said: “The maintenance and custodial costs of the four buildings total just over £170,000. If the money was to be saved then the only other option within Learning Pembrokeshire would be to stop doing the courses. To stop doing £170,000 worth of courses would have a major impact on the opportunities that we offer.

“In terms of the Fishguard building itself, the cost there is just over £25,000 and so there is a significant amount tied up in maintenance of these buildings.

“Until this paper is agreed we haven’t done anything in terms of conversations with stakeholders or the head teacher at Bro Gwaun School or anything like that, we didn’t have clearance to do that. Clearly, Councillors will be aware that consultation is about to start following a decision of full council about the future of education provision and changes that are being consulted on in the Fishguard area and it may well be that the future of the building there would probably be considered as part of that”.

Council Leader Jamie Adams said: “We either maintain the service or if we carry on as we are, the service will fall apart. There may be other areas in the community that would benefit from an element of service provision”.

James White added: “Learning Pembrokeshire is the second largest deliverer of adult learning after Cardiff in terms of the council. The Council runs/provides just over 80% of the totality of adult learning in the county. We’re very close to the point where Learning Pembrokeshire costs the council nothing. If you think that putting Learning Pembrokeshire somewhere else will save money then it won’t”.

Cllr Huw George said: “Let’s make sure that the services are out there, what the people want, it doesn’t matter who does it but now is the time to have that look”.

Cllr Keith Lewis said: “The Public consultation meeting we held in Fishguard in November (2014), one of the points that came up was that the people of Fishguard felt that they would prefer to maintain the services but that if building had to be rationalised they would go along with that. People do appreciate the situation we are, if it means we can maintain the service by moving and perhaps getting rid of some, I think that’s a good way forward”.

James White concluded: “Although the location of the youth centre may well change, we will still have a youth club in Tenby”.