Kate Ashbrook

Campaigners are urging the new operators of a national park learning centre to keep its promises made to authority bosses.

The Open Spaces Society welcomed the move to consider leasing Losehill Hall in the Peak District rather than selling it off.

And the OSS general secretary Kate Ashbrook, who addressed Friday’s meeting of the Peak District National Park Authority on the matter, called on the Youth Hostels Association to carry on the work of the centre, which the park authority considered selling off to save an annual cost of £250,000.

YHA was named preferred bidder by the Peak national park.

Ms Ashbrook said: “We are disappointed that the Field Studies Council was not the preferred bidder, as FSC appeared to us to be the best fit for retaining Losehill Hall as an outstanding environmental and national park learning centre.

“However, we are pleased that the Peak Park wishes to give serious consideration to a leasehold with the Youth Hostels Association, rather than selling Losehill Hall outright.

“We strongly support a leasehold. As we told the members at their meeting, a lease enables the national park authority to set conditions and retain control of what happens at the hall, keeping that vital link between the environmental centre and the park. So we shall urge the services committee, which reconsiders the matter on 21 January, to opt for leasehold.

“We were encouraged by the assurances given by Caroline White, YHA’s chief executive, in addressing the park authority members last Friday.

“She said that, in partnership with the authority, YHA would create a ‘first-class hostel and world-class education centre’, and that it would ‘continue to expand and develop professional training’, it would target disadvantaged young people, offer a break for kids of limited means, it would provide a great opportunity for more conference work and campaigns training.

“The YHA pledged ‘to retain the traditions and values of Losehill Hall’.

“So provided the YHA keeps its promises, Losehill Hall could offer the range and standard of opportunities it currently provides.”

The authority’s decision on the hall means 36 staff will lose their jobs, as the learning team is cut to just five. In addition, five fewer casual workers will be needed at the hall.

YHA had not responded to grough’s requests for a statment by the time of publication.