A new lease of life could be on the cards for Spalding Magistrates’ Court if MP John Hayes gets his way.
Mr Hayes, who fought vehemently to keep the court from closing, wants to see the building used by community and charity groups and hopes it might be the answer to a problem faced by Spalding’s Royal British Legion branch.
Mr Hayes said: “My determination now is for the building to be used by the community.
“The campaign to keep it open was fatally wounded when the Magistrates’ Courts Committee de-listed cases.
“[Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice] Chris Grayling said to me: ‘I can’t justify keeping a court open that has no cases listed.’
“I now want to see a community use for the building. I don’t want to see it mothballed like the one in Boston, which was by the same architect.
“I would much rather it be used by a charitable organisation than a commercial one.
“I also think that a deal for a charity, perhaps on a long-term lease, would be possible in a way that the Ministry of Justice would be happy with.”
The Spalding branch of the RBL has outgrown its home in Spring Gardens and desperately needs somewhere bigger to meet.
The current headquarters can accommodate about 30 at a push and what the charity really needs is somewhere big enough for about 100 people, along with a kitchen, toilets and storage room.
Colin Jackman, branch chairman and treasurer, said: “We have been looking for a new home for some time and Mr Hayes approached myself and our president Terry Moore to say he feared the magistrates’ court would be closed for good and he didn’t want to see it mothballed.
“He said he wanted to see community groups and charities like ours using the building on a lease basis.
“We need to get in and have a look at the space in there to see if it’s right for us but I really feel it could be the answer.”
The branch would sell the current building, put the money into trust and use the interest to pay what they hope would be a peppercorn rent for the court.
Mr Jackman added: “As a charity we have to watch every penny.”
Mr Hayes said he has been approached by the Lighthouse Church which needs more storage room for the foodbank and he hopes the court building could become a home for other charitable groups as well.
He added: “It is a large building so it would be perfect to house several groups there.
“The last thing I want to see is it become a white elephant.”
