Hart council has been criticised over its plans for the district’s flagship community centre.

The authority is looking at reducing staff at Fleet’s Harlington Centre to the bare minimum and increasing hire rates so it can break even.

Three new parish councils could then take over the running of the Fleet Road venue, which is currently losing around £350,000 a year.

But the proposals came under fire when Hart’s cabinet met to discuss the centre’s future on Thursday evening.

Around 30 residents listened to the debate, which lasted more than two hours.

After Hart’s chief executive Geoff Bonner had made a powerpoint presentation, residents were given the chance to ask questions and make points.

Fleet resident and regular hall user Ann Bauer said the questions largely focused on the poor communication by the council, its apparent lack of financial and forward planning, the rise in hire charges and what steps it had taken to improve usage of the centre.

She said Mr Bonner apologised for the council’s “garbled communication” to centre users and residents and for not consulting them earlier.

“Much of the debate centred on whether the new parish councils would take over the running of the centre or whether it belonged to the district — whether the centre was a village hall or a much broader community centre,” said Mrs Bauer.

“The council stated the centre would be run by 4.4 staff but this can really be read as 2.4 staff as two members are for the coffee shop. That leaves 2.4 staff for the rest of the building, which begs questions of safety and security, how days that might run from 9am to 8pm could be managed, the maintenance and use of technical equipment and how staff holidays will be arranged.

“The impression given was that the council was looking at a cost-cutting exercise through staff cuts and losing £150,630 of support charges by handing over the running to the parish councils.

“What the council did not take into account was that there would still be support charges and no one gave us a figure on what they could amount to.”

A member of the public asked what was being done to increase the revenue and use of the centre, but there was no clear answer.

Hart Council leader Ken Crookes said the short-term need was to make the centre more financially viable.

“We’ve listened to users and the new staffing structure ensures there will be a member of staff there all the time the centre is open.

“There is quite a lot of time when the centre is open but no one is using it.

“We now propose to keep the centre open all the time the library is open and any time there is a booking when the library is not open.

“What’s the point in keeping the centre open if the library is closed and no one is using it?”

Cllr Crookes said the council proposals would reduce the centre’s operating deficit to around £175,000 in 2009-10.