Rugeley Power Station closure: Dozens of sports teams to be evicted
Dozens of sports clubs are set to be evicted when Rugeley Power Station closes in the next few weeks.
Ever since the announcement that the plant's remaining B Station would be shut down this summer - now confirmed to be the end of June - years earlier than expected, attention has been drawn to the 120 jobs which would be lost at the site.
But Cannock Chase MP Amanda Milling has now called on leisure centres and sports halls in the area to come forward to provide facilities for dozens of teams and clubs which are also set to be effected by the closure.
They have until March next year to find alternative homes to play.
Ms Milling said: "The sporting and leisure facilities at the power station are hugely important to the Rugeley community and the wider area.
"The site is home to everything from a social club, football pitches and tennis courts, through to a model railway.
"Dozens of clubs are based there and the closure of these facilities next year is causing real concern for the thousands of people who use the site every year.
"I am calling on any community centre, sports centre and local authority to come forward and help the clubs find a new home."
The MP raised the issued ahead of visiting the power station next week to speak to bosses and trade union representatives about what is being done to support the workforce.
Around 30 staff are expected to stay on for nine months to oversee the decommissioning process. It is estimated the redevelopment of the site could take a minimum of five years with demolition and decontamination of the brownfield site to take three years alone.
Ms Milling is holding a jobs fair at Rugeley Rose Theatre on Friday June 17th. She added: "It is essential that we do everything we can to support all of those affected, from helping the employees and contractors find new jobs; helping community groups find new facilities and supporting the wider supply chain who are reliant on the plant. I am also calling on the site's owners and councils to ensure the existing leisure facilities are incorporated into the plans for the future of the site, as well as developments which will create new jobs and homes."
