Islington Boat Club trustee John Rowlinson, club manager Sarah-Jane Elvin and paddle-sports instructor Rose Austin; on the barge, office manager Jan Dorling

• IT is hugely disappointing for the council that Islington Boat Club has had to be closed, (‘Save Our Boat Club!’ appeal as it’s ordered to quit canalside site, November 18).

But the fact is, it is a failing organisation, and has been failing for some time. It is failing financially, failing on management, failing on governance, failing on safeguarding, and we now know was also failing on the most basic maintenance standards for its clubhouse.

Islington Council had no choice but to close the building for safety reasons. The council currently has no confidence that the boat club as an organisation, in its current form, could safely and effectively run a thriving and sustainable operation.

And the council has a duty to satisfy itself that an organisation requesting a lease from the council to run community activities from the site is competent to do so.

I am doing all I can to try and help bring the right people together to help the club recover. But it is ultimately up to the club to embrace the necessary changes to management and governance structures, and business planning, in order for the council to be satisfied that the site and club can be safely, properly and successfully run.

No one is keener to see this happen than me.

CLLR MARTIN KLUTE
Chair, Planning Committee
Labour, St Peter’s & Canalside ward