Romsey Visitor Information Centre on Church Street is set to close at the end of March but staff said they were only told in December and were not allowed to argue for it to remain open.
Tourism South East (TSE), whose contract with Test Valley Borough Council (TVBC) to run the site terminates on Monday, March 31, is yet to comment but staff assert they will lose their jobs.
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Staff said they were trying to diversify what was on offer at Romsey Visitor Information Centre (Image: Charles Elliman) Workers at the visitor information centre, due to be taken over by King John’s House, spoke on condition of anonymity.
One member of staff said: “As a staff, we’ve just been left hanging for a year – it’s been extremely stressful for everyone involved.
“The contract was due to be renewed in March last year, I believe, between TVBC and TSE and we weren’t informed until December.”
Staff at the visitor information centre said they were not allowed to argue its value to the review ordered by TVBC, which cost £14,150.
They said they have been taking measures to diversify the services on offer at the centre, such as by selling antiques.
The staff member continued: “I feel the borough council has not been open and, worst still, the Romsey residents and I feel it is wholly unfair to the community.
“People trust us to provide them with information – everything from bus timetables to events. Many of our customers are elderly and need our support to buy tickets.”
Another member of staff said: “All I know is that the council is closing the information centre down and giving it to KJH. I’ve worked here for two years but people have worked here longer than me.”
In a statement on Thursday, January 9, Councillor Terese Swain, Community, Leisure and Tourism Portfolio Holder for TVBC, said: “An independent review of Tourism in Test Valley conducted in 2023 highlighted that tourism and customer behaviours are changing and more people are planning visits online.
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“As a result, the review concluded that we can enhance our tourism offer through investing in digital marketing as a more effective way to attract visitors to Test Valley.
“In addition, the current visitor information centre will become the first of our new Tourist Information Points, hosted by KJH.”
Under the new plans, the visitor information centre will become the new entrance for KJH and become one of nine new tourism information points assisting visitors, providing access to digital information and a “streamlined” option of leaflets.