Neighbourhood Learning Centre (NLC) redevelopment update

Unavoidable delays in the build programme means redevelopment of the Council’s Neighbourhood Learning Centre (NLC) at Gurnos is unlikely to be complete until winter 2022, rather than autumn as originally anticipated.

The building is being redeveloped into ‘a unique accommodation centre’ providing young residents aged between 16 and 24 years with both housing and on-site training.

The demolition phase began in February and has been finished. But while work to the interiors is ongoing throughout the summer, the external façade will take longer following ecological assessments and the need for a bat licence from Natural Resource Wales to ensure that the bat species are protected throughout.

As part of the Council’s Capital Programme investment project, the centre’s employability and training facilities are going to be relocated from the three into two blocks, with the third converted into five self-contained apartments.

The Council has been awarded £1,129,000 for the project from the Cwm Taf Morgannwg Integrated Care Fund Discretionary Capital Programme, which has identified work with young people and looked-after children as a key priority.

We are now in the process of carrying out a tender exercise to commission the support provider who will be based in the accommodation block to provide any housing related support to those who reside at the NLC.

This support will be ‘low level’, meaning the residents will be ready for independent learning and motivated to benefit from the training and employability support, but may need some support with managing a tenancy, or general housing related support. The Council will be working in partnership with Merthyr Valleys Homes and the newly commissioned support provider to manage the homes.

We will continue to issue updates on the programme and the reopening/relaunch of the apartments and wider training facilities as this information becomes available.