Centre faces axe

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THE Hull women's centre was opened in 1979, when a number of women clubbed together to buy 14 Middleton Street on a rental purchase agreement.

They wanted to provide a space for women where they could meet whenever they wanted or to do whatever they wanted, free from the hassle and intimidation of men.

The collective of women using and running the centre since then has changed, and we hope will continue to change as more women ûse the resources of the centre.

Despite this, dark cloud hangs over 14 Middleton St. This year we were given notice of a compulsory purchase order on the build= it it is likely to be desometime next year.

At first it seemed that we would only get site value for the house in compensation - about £80. Clearly that would not be enough to set us up somewhere else.

As Hull has a Labour-controlled city council, we decided to mount a campaign to put pressure on them to re-site us in more suitable premises - a good test for the Labour Party's commitment to the women's movement.

Property

However, all that we have heard from them officially is that there is no council property available at the moment and they suggest that we start looking for somewhere to buy privately.

In the meantime we have received support for the women's centre from local trade union branches via the Trades Council, in the form of cash donations and standing orders. Other women's groups and individuals have also been generous.

Grant

We have tried to raise cash from the council through an application for an inner-city grant: but the consultations we had with the grants committee were farcical.

We are now pursuing our case with local councillors, and negotiating compensation for the building at market value. A big effort is being made to build up a publicity campaign.

Meanwhile, some of the houses down the street are boarded up and empty already, and the area is being run down. Unless the centre is re-sited quickly, it will become a place where women won't want to go any more.

The women of the collective feel that they have learned quite a lot from the campaign to • save the women's centre. It has convinced us that women's autonomy must be at the forefront of the women's movement. It is only women's struggles that will achieve what women want.

Wendy Leedham (for Hull women's collective)

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