We bring you the sad news that the Lovell Park Hub building, home to Leeds Autism AIM’s regular drop-in and booked appointment-only Autism Hub sessions, is set to close. The building, owned by Leeds City Council, will be put up for sale to help reduce the Council’s budget deficit.
It is expected that the Lovell Park Hub building will close its’ doors for the final time on Thursday 17th April. If this date changes, we will let you know as soon as possible. We will have further information on when our last drop-in and booked appointment-only Hub sessions will be at this venue closer to the date.
The Hub has been a regular venue for us since January 2015. In that time, we have held close to 600 Autism Hub sessions there, welcoming hundreds of autistic adults. The Hub has played host to one-to-one appointments, talks and peer-led groups. It will be incredibly sad to see the building close, having worked with the Council to run regular sessions there.
What happens next?
At the time of writing, we are planning where we will hold our one-to-one appointments and the Mental Health Equity Project’s in-person Mental Health Peer Support Groups. We will at the very least have a temporary venue sorted by April. More details about that will be published by the end of February 2025.
We will be responding to email and phone enquiries as normal, whilst our online Peer Support and Women-Aligned Groups will continue to run at their usual dates and times. In addition to that, we can provide one-to-one appointments remotely via phone call or video.
Sharing your thoughts about the Hub closure
Having been there for a decade, it is going to be hard for us to leave. The move will cause some upheaval, which will also likely impact on anyone who attends the Hub. If you have any thoughts about the Lovell Park Hub’s closure, we are happy to help you put them forward.
We have put together an online survey, where you can share your views on how important the Hub is to you, what you use it for and how its’ closure will affect you. We will pass on the results of the survey to the Council and other important decision makers to show how important the building is to you.
To take the survey, please click on the button below.
Leeds Autism AIM Survey: Lovell Park Hub Closure
The deadline for completing the survey is Monday 24th February at 5pm.
In addition to that, our Senior Manager Owen Walker will be around at our drop-in session on Tuesday 11th February from 4pm-7pm. He will be available to talk to anyone about the Hub’s closure in person.
Contacting local councillors and MPs
You can also raise your views about the Hub’s closure by writing to your local councillors or MP. If you are unsure of who your local councillors are, you can find out by visiting this page and typing in your postcode. To find your local MP, please click here: Find your MP.
